Question reference: S6W-10112
- Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
- Date lodged: 29 July 2022
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Current status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 25 August 2022
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to advising NHS boards to follow NICE guideline NG35 on the diagnosis and management of myeloma, published in 2018, in light of no SIGN guideline reportedly existing for myeloma.
Answer
The individual clinical management of patients is a matter for territorial health boards. We do however expect that all patients are treated and cared for in a person centred way. When there are no SIGN guideline in place, NHS Boards and Integration Authorities may choose to consider other relevant guideline such as those of the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in the planning and delivery of services.
In Scotland we use the Scottish Referral Guidelines for Suspected Cancer, which were revised and published in 2019. These national guidelines are based on clinical evidence and review to help support clinicians across the country to refer those patients who are most likely to have cancer, including myeloma, into diagnostic services swiftly.