Haematuria is a frequently encountered presentation in the emergency department (ED). 1,2 Presentation of visible or macroscopic haematuria varies, including presence of clots, retention of urine and concurrence of pain. It may be due to a variety of causes, the most serious being underlying malignant pathology.The positive predictive value (PPV) of visible haematuria (VH) for urological cancer is 10%-22%. 3,4 Prospective cohort studies in United Kingdom (UK) protocol-driven haematuria clinics have revealed an incidence of malignant pathology in 19%-24% of patients with VH vs 3.7%-5.2% for non-visible haematuria. 5-8The majority of malignancies found are urothelial carcinoma (UC) of the bladder. AbstractIntroduction: Visible haematuria (VH) is a very common presentation to the emergency department (ED). In an outpatient setting, 18%-24% of such patients have been shown to have an underlying malignancy. The aim of this study is to determine the malignancy rates of patients presenting acutely to ED and whether the degree of bleeding or presence of clots is a higher risk factor for cancer. Method: We retrospectively collected data from adult patients (>18 years) presenting to ED with VH for a six-month period. Diagnostic outcomes after one year were assessed. Results: Our study population has 96 patients (male = 77, female = 19) with a mean age of 68 years (SD = 20.2). Twenty-eight patients (29%) had haematuria with clots. Twenty-five patients (26%) had a new diagnosis of malignancy, and 10 had a known diagnosis of malignant disease. Bladder cancer was the most commonly found malignancy, in 17 patients (15 new diagnoses), while prostate cancer was second with 14 cases (six new). Renal cancer two, testicular one and colorectal one accounted for the other new malignancies diagnosed following presentation. All but one patient with cancer were male. Although most malignancies were found in patients over 70 years old, the two youngest patients were in their 30s. The incidence of malignancy appears to increase in patients who have urinary blood clots (58%), p = 0.08. Conclusion: A third of patients presenting to ED with VH will have a urological cancer. Patients with VH and clots have a significantly higher incidence of malignancy. We recommend expedited referral of all such patients to a urologist.

Introduction Multidisciplinary team (MDT) meetings have been the gold standard of cancer care in the UK since the 1990s. We aimed to identify the views of urology cancer MDT members in the UK on improving the functioning of meetings and compare them with those of other specialties to manage the increasing demand on healthcare resources and enhance the care of complex cancer cases. Methods We analysed data from 2 national surveys distributed by Cancer Research UK focusing on the views of 2,294 and 1,258 MDT members about cancer MDT meetings. Findings Most breast, colorectal, lung and urology cancer MDT members felt meetings could be improved in the following areas: time for meeting preparation in job plans, streamlining of patients, auditing meeting decisions and prioritising complex cases. Most urology respondents (87%) agreed some patients could be managed outside a full MDT discussion, but this was lower for other specialties (lung 78%, breast 75%, colorectal 64%). Conclusions To facilitate decisions on which patients require discussion in an MDT meeting, factors adding to case complexity across all tumour types were identified, including rare tumour type, cognitive impairment and previous treatment failure. This study confirms that urology MDT members are supportive of changing from reviewing all new cancer diagnoses to discussing complex cases but managing others with a more protocolised pathway. The mechanisms for how to do this and how to ensure the safety of patients require further clarification.

Objectives: Flexible cystoscopy can cause patients significant psychological distress, especially when utilised in the diagnostic pathway for suspected bladder cancer. We aimed to assess the prevalence of general anxiety and depression, as well as procedure-related worry and pain in patients undergoing local anaesthetic flexible cystoscopy and to determine whether these conditions occur more frequently in subsets of the population. Patients and methods: Patients referred for flexible cystoscopy were invited to participate. Patients were asked to complete a questionnaire containing the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), a worry score and a question regarding the most stressful event in the diagnostic pathway. Following the procedure patients were also asked to complete a pain score. Results: A total of 175 patients participated in the study. The prevalence of significant anxiety was 15% and depression 3.5%. This was higher in younger, female and unmarried patients. Procedure-related worry and pain were generally low. Conclusions: We found the prevalence of anxiety and depression in patients undergoing flexible cystoscopy to be raised compared to a similar cohort of patients undergoing TRUS-guided prostate biopsy. We have identified subgroups more likely to experience these symptoms and have also identified the sections of the diagnostic pathway that are most likely to cause anxiety and depression. By doing this we can target those patients who are more likely to suffer during the diagnostic process and aim to improve their experience. We can also implement targeted changes to the pathway to reduce the impact it may have on patients' mental health.