“Wow! What an innovative way to use data for such an important cause. Outstanding both from the solution and potential impact.” – Judges’ comment
As one of the most common cancers diagnosed in the UK, ovarian cancer impacts thousands of people every year and more than 4,000 people die each year because of it. One in five women are diagnosed in A&E and many do not receive any treatment for their disease, often because they are too unwell by the time they are diagnosed. Symptoms of ovarian cancer can be unclear in the early stages of the disease, which leads to some people buying medication over the counter pain and indigestion medications to alleviate their symptoms including loss of appetite and bloating instead of visiting a GP, which risks giving the disease time to spread.
“A fantastic use of data.” – Judges’ comment
By identifying individuals that were purchasing pain and indigestion medications – potential signs of ovarian cancer – the study was able to develop an early warning system to encourage patients to meet with their GPs and receive a more accurate diagnosis. Boots and Tesco shared up to six years’ worth of data to test the hypothesis that women self-treating before seeing a GP and the change in shopping behaviours surrounding pain and indigestion can be a flag for ovarian cancer. Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire about ovarian cancer risks, their symptoms and any cancer referral diagnoses. The loyalty card data showed that pain and indigestion medicine purchases were higher in women that were subsequently diagnosed with ovarian cancer and these trends could be seen up to eight months before diagnosis. On average, participants with ovarian cancer began to recognise their symptoms four and a half months before diagnosis. Of those who visited a GP to check their symptoms, the first visit occurred, on average, three and a half months before diagnosis.
Dr David Crosby, head of prevention and early detection research at Cancer Research UK, said: “Today, in the digital age, we live with a wealth of data at our fingertips. Studies like this are a great example of how we can harness this information for good and help us detect cancer earlier. It is incredible to think that this innovative study using loyalty cards – something most of us carry in our wallets – could help women with ovarian cancer which is often diagnosed late and mimics the symptoms of other, more benign conditions. This study indicates exciting potential for a new way to detect cancer earlier and save lives.”
Further research is needed to confirm the findings of this study, but the initial signs are promising, and these data could help to identify people who may have ovarian cancer at an earlier stage. It is hoped that this research will lead to the future development of an alert system for individuals to help them to seek medical attention for symptoms of cancers or other diseases sooner than ever before.
