The impact of local guidelines on the tumour marker requesting patterns of a General Surgery Department

BackgroundThe inappropriate use of tumour markers (TMs) is a common problem. The aim of this audit was to evaluate the impact of local guidelines on the TM requesting patterns of a General Surgery Department.MethodsCA 125, CA 19-9, CA15-3, CEA, AFP and HCG requests from all hospital surgical locations were audited over two periods of eight months before and after the implementation of local requesting guidelines.ResultsPostintervention, total TM requests decreased by 32% while patient requests decreased by 9.8%. Single TM requesting increased and requests for panels containing four or more TMs decreased from 279 to 60 requests (78% reduction).ConclusionInterdepartmental collaboration and the implementation of local guidelines have resulted in a change in requesting behaviour, most notably a reduction in multiple TM panel requests.