Introduction Colorectal cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer death. Identification and treatment of disease at an early stage is associated with significantly improved outcomes. True cancer intelligence, defined as knowledge of the patient population and uptake of screening services by colorectal surgeons, would aid early diagnosis and service management. This study aimed to identify areas associated with late stage colorectal cancer presentation and corresponding uptake of faecal occult blood screening (FOB), to promote focused interventions at a primary care level aimed at improving disease outcomes.

Method All colorectal cancer presentations to our centre between November 2010 and January 2013 were analysed. Age at presentation, GP and patient postcode were recorded. FOB uptake by GP practices was correlated to cancer stage at presentation (determined by radiological and histological reports, grouping them into early (stage I/II) and late (stage III/IV) stages). Data was analysed to determine whether uptake of FOB was correlated to stage of disease.

Results A total of 205 consecutive non-screen detected colorectal cancer cases were analysed, with a mean age of 75 years (range 43–100). Late stage disease was seen in 57% of cases of our population. There is a correlation between areas that have a low uptake of FOB and late stage at diagnosis.

Conclusion The proportion of patients presenting with late stage disease to our centre is greater than the national average. The correlation between low FOB screening uptake and disease-stage would suggest that certain areas would benefit from focused screening services to improve local GP and patient understanding of colorectal cancer and screening.

Disclosure of interest None Declared.