A campaign involving University of Nottingham experts that aims to reduce the time it takes doctors to diagnose a brain tumour in children and young people is showing positive results within a year of its launch.

The HeadSmart campaign, launched last June, is showing laudable results in reducing diagnosis times, based on data revealed at The Royal College of Paediatric and Child Health Conference in Glasgow last month.

The UK data collected in the months before and after the campaign launch and compared to previous data showed a statistically significant reduction in the time taken to diagnosis. The long-term target is to reduce the interval from 14.4 weeks to five weeks. The campaign can already report a reduction to 7.5 weeks.

The campaign was the brainchild of the Children’s Brain Tumour Research Centre at The University of Nottingham, Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.

“Brain tumours in children can be very difficult to diagnose,” said Dr Sophie Wilne, a consultant paediatric oncologist at Nottingham Children’s Hospital. “The initial symptoms are often non-specific and can occur with other more common and less serious childhood illnesses. There is also lack of awareness among healthcare professionals that brain tumours do occur in children. Most childhood brain tumours are curable and we know that if we reduce the time taken to diagnosis we will reduce the likelihood of a child suffering from long-term, life-altering disability.”

A study of 155 children diagnosed before the launch last year showed that the average interval between onset of symptoms and diagnosis was 9.3 weeks. Recent figures from 219 children diagnosed since the launch show a reduction to 7.5 weeks. These figures are encouraging but highlight the need for further education for both parents and health professionals.

The campaign is based on a clinical guideline endorsed by the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and accredited by NHS Evidence and aims to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of childhood brain tumours.HeadSmart also includes an online education module to teach doctors about the symptoms of brain tumours and how to decide which children can be reassured, which should be reviewed and which need immediate scanning.

Dr David Walker, Professor of Paediatric Oncology at The University of Nottingham’s Children’s Brain Tumour Research Centre and lead clinician on the HeadSmart campaign, was pleased to have had so much support from colleagues from the children brain tumour centres across the UK and Ireland. The campaign has been shortlisted for the BMJ’s Improving Healthcare Award for Excellence in Healthcare Education.