Clinical characteristics and outcomes for patients with an initial emergency presentation of malignancy: A 15 month audit of patient level data

Despite a wide range of initiatives, the emergency and late diagnosis of patients with metastatic cancer remains a significant challenge with many patients too advanced and unwell at presentation for active treatment. These patients tend to be older and have malignancies that present with either non-specific symptoms or symptoms requiring acute assessment. Improving the pathways for these patients will be challenging and require additional planning on improving awareness and access for these potentially hard to reach patients.