In June 2017, NICE issued quality standard that covers diagnostic reporting and the organisation of haematological cancer services for people of all ages (children, adults and young people) and managing haematological cancers in adults and young people (aged 16 and over). It describes high-quality care in priority areas for improvement.
Next quality statements are elaborated:
Statement 1: People with haematological cancer have an integrated report produced by a specialist integrated haematological malignancy diagnostic service (SIHMDS) that is shared with the haemato-oncology multidisciplinary team (MDT).
Statement 2: Young people and adults with specific subtypes of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma have staging using fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography-CT (FDG-PET-CT).
Statement 3: Young people and adults with localised stage IIA follicular lymphoma have local radiotherapy as first-line treatment.
Statement 4: Young people and adults who have completed their treatment for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma or myeloma have a discussion about their end-of-treatment summary plan.
This quality standard is reviewed each year and updated if needed. Next review is foreseen for August 2018.
This quality standard is endorsed by NHS England as required by the Health and Social Care Act (2012). A number of organisations recognise the benefit of this quality standard in improving care.
NICE quality standards describe high-priority areas for quality improvement in a defined care or service area. Each standard consists of a prioritised set of specific, concise and measurable statements. NICE quality standards draw on existing NICE or NICE-accredited guidance that provides an underpinning, comprehensive set of recommendations, and are designed to support the measurement of improvement.