Our plan to improve care for people living with metastatic cancer

We want to make sure that everyone living with metastatic cancer gets the best possible care and support. That means making services easier to use, improving treatment, and making sure people feel heard and well looked after.

Metastatic cancer occurs when cancer spreads from its original (primary) site to other parts of the body.

Metastatic cancer can be harder to treat than primary cancer and may not be curable. However, incurable cancer may still be treatable – more metastatic patients are living positive, valuable, fulfilling lives with their cancer. Care usually focuses on keeping the cancer under control, managing pain and symptoms, and helping people live as well as possible, for as long as possible.

Everyone’s experience is different. How long someone lives with metastatic cancer depends on things like the type of cancer, how far it has spread, and their overall health.

The good news is that treatments are getting better all the time. New medicines and approaches mean that many people with metastatic cancer are living longer than before. There is real reason for hope.

This is the responsibility of everyone working in cancer care in Greater Manchester.

We will make sure that the needs of people living with metastatic cancer are considered in everything we do, from finding metastatic cancer early, to treatment, ongoing care and support. This must include high quality end-of-life care, for those who need it.

We will also support health care professionals to learn more about metastatic cancer, so they are able to provide better care.

We will always include people with metastatic cancer in our planning — their voices and experiences will help shape the care we provide.

Quick Links

Primary care and early diagnosis

Aims

  • Educate patients and healthcare professionals on the signs and symptoms of metastatic disease
  • Improve referral pathways to ensure patients get timely access to the right team when presenting with suspected metastatic symptoms

Progress

  • We have a developed infographics for all relevant tumour types which display signs and symptoms of metastatic disease
  • We are currently exploring how the referral pathway for patients presenting with non-specific symptoms can be improved
  • We are looking at how signs and symptoms of metastatic cancer can be added to a tool on GP computer systems. This helps doctors recognise metastatic cancer in busy consultations

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Treatment and performance

Aims

  • Ensure data is collected and recorded accurately to identify the number of patients diagnosed with metastatic cancer
  • Reduce delays in how quickly metastatic cancer is identified
  • Improve how specialist teams work together to care for individuals living with metastatic cancer

Progress

  • We have made good progress in developing a new data algorithm to identify patients who have previously been diagnosed with metastatic cancer
  • New guidelines have been developed to help clinical teams accurately record when a patient develops metastatic cancer
  • We are currently exploring the feasibility of metastatic-specific multidisciplinary team meetings (bringing different cancer specialists together to agree the most suitable treatment and support)
  • We are working with hospitals to ensure patients with metastatic cancer gets scans and tests as quickly as patients with primary cancer

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Personalised care

Aims

  • Tailor follow-up care to individual patient needs, such as improving access to psychological support, and managing side effects of hormone therapy
  • Ensure equity of access to genomic/genetic testing

Progress

  • We now collect data on patients with metastatic cancer accessing psychological support via the Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust
  • We have secured funding to scope what a high quality support plan would look like for patients living with metastatic breast or lung cancer
  • We have included a dedicated section for metastatic cancer on the health and wellbeing hub

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Workforce and education

Aims

  • Improve how teams work together and use resources to deliver efficient, joined‑up care for metastatic cancer.
  • Understand the education needs of the workforce, and equip them with the knowledge, skills and resources to provide high-quality care and support for patients with metastatic cancer.

Progress

  • We have scoped the needs of the workforce to understand knowledge gaps around metastatic cancer.
  • We have embedded metastatic scenarios into our advanced communication skills e-learning to upskill the workforce.
  • We are developing a metastatic e-learning module covering terminology, metastases in the brain, bone, liver and lung, and advanced care planning and end of life care.

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Communications

Aims

  • Ensure our communications and resources incorporate patients living with metastatic cancer
  • Raise awareness of the programme of work to improve metastatic cancer care

Progress

  • We have worked in collaboration with patients and carers with lived experience of metastatic cancer throughout the development and delivery of the metastatic cancer strategy
  • We held an event to launch the metastatic strategy with stakeholders across the region
  • We developed a series of videos which showcase why we need to improve care for patients living with metastatic cancer

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Work on our metastatic strategy is ongoing and this page will be updated regularly. Please check back for updates.