The impact of introducing the recent DILO card scheme on the causes for admitting patients to the Wejherowo Cancer Clinic compared to previous conditions

Introduction. Patient waiting time for specialist consultations in oncology had ranged from a few to several weeks in 2013. This was due to there being insufficient physicians in oncology, an uneven distribution of cancer centres and that referrals were not necessarily required for attending cancer out-patient clinics. After introducing the ‘Diagnosis and Treatment of Cancer’ (DILO) card, reduced waiting times were intended. Materials and methods. A retrospective study was undertaken at the hospital workplace to analyse reasons for referral in 1124 patients registering for the first time at the Cancer Clinic in Wejherowo in 2015, where those with or without DILO cards were compared. In cases of referrals for which cancer was suspected, clinical and histopathological or cytological investigations were performed. Those qualifying for radical oncological treatment were also counted in. Results. For most cases the reasons for oncological referral using DILO cards were found to be pathologies detected by imaging tests, whereas few diagnoses were made that were based on either cytological or histopathological testing, or indeed by any abnormalities observed from physical examination. Conclusions. Based on the outcomes and experience of the authors, a practical set of guidelines has been proposed when making patient referrals to cancer out-patient clinics for consultation. Coupled with this, GPs’ increased knowledge on cancer may serve to lessen the number of referrals to cancer out-patient clinics. Thus, access to oncological consultations would become facilitated.