The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners
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Multicenter Study
Urgent suspected cancer referrals from general practice: audit of compliance with guidelines and referral outcomes.
Late diagnosis contributes to the UK having poorer cancer survival than many countries in Europe. Cancer referral guidelines help GPs decide which patients to refer urgently for further investigation. ⋯ There is wide variation in GP referral rates for suspected cancer with a greater than expected proportion of referrals for younger people. Many referrals considered to be outside the national guidelines were diagnosed with cancer, suggesting factors other than those in referral guidelines alert GPs to the possibility of cancer.
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Community-acquired pneumonia is one of the most common causes of hospitalisation and death in older people. Recent research suggests that statins might improve the outcome of infectious diseases because of their anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory properties. ⋯ In this large population-based case-control study, current exposure to statins was associated with a reduced risk of pneumonia. The findings were similar to other observational population-based studies, but further randomised controlled trials are necessary before recommending statins to patients at high risk of pneumonia.