Acceptability and utilisation of patient‐initiated follow‐up for endometrial cancer amongst women from diverse ethnic and social backgrounds: A mixed methods study

Introduction A shift in focus towards risk stratification and survivorship in early stage endometrial cancer (EC) has led to the replacement of hospital follow‐up (HFU) with patient‐initiated follow‐up (PIFU) schemes. Methods A mixed methods study was undertaken prospectively to investigate utility and patient satisfaction with a newly introduced PIFU scheme. Results Two hundred and twenty‐eight women were enrolled onto PIFU in the first 18 months, median age 65 years (range 42–90 years). Twenty‐four (10.5%) women were non‐British White ethnicity. Forty‐five women contacted the Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) at least once (19.7%), the primary reason being vaginal bleeding/discharge (42%). Contact was greater in first six months on the scheme compared to the second 6 months, and women who made contact were significantly younger than those who did not (57 years vs. 65 years, p