Is systematic identification of Familial Breast Cancer risk more cost-effective than the currently recommended opportunistic approach in primary care?

Identification of women at risk of breast cancer based on their family history allows the National Health Service (NHS) to prevent them developing the cancer, and can also help detect the cancer earlier, at a more treatable and curable stage through regular breast screening. Currently, family history is usually only assessed if women see their General Practitioner (GP) with concerns about breast cancer in themselves or relatives. Our research suggests this means many women with a relevant family history are missed, particularly those from poorer backgrounds. This may lead to such women not being identified until they have advanced cancer, when it is too late to offer curative treatment.

 More thorough assessment of family history (where all women aged 30 to 70 registered at a practice receive a family history questionnaire) appears to be a better approach to identifying women who are at a higher risk of breast cancer. This has been demonstrated to be feasible and acceptable to women.

The aim of this study is to assess whether the thorough assessment approach for assessing the risk of familial breast cancer offers value for money. This will involve using data collected from ongoing studies and published research to perform an economic evaluation of the additional costs and health gains resulting from systematically identifying women with relevant family histories compared to the current ad hoc approach.

Amount awarded: £56,184