The Brain Tumour Charity has launched Headsmart GP, an evidence-based toolkit for primary care teams.

It is being piloted in the West Midlands and is endorsed by the West Midlands Cancer Alliance.Every year, 13,000 people are diagnosed with a brain tumour in the UK.

In England, 45% of these occur in emergency settings.

Data shows that most patients see a primary care professional at least three times before diagnosis. However, diagnosing suspected brain tumours can be challenging - as symptoms are often vague or undisclosed.

Identifying suspected brain tumours is a major challenge for primary care as it often relies on piecing together signs and symptom combinations that can be vague, subtle and non-specific.

The challenge is further increased by the fact that, often, patients don’t disclose their full symptom list, as they might be embarrassed or not see why it is relevant.

Headsmart GP will help primary care teams to:

• Spot subtle symptom combinations (usually a headache plus)
• Manage uncertainty through digging deeper questions and safety-nettingThe toolkit, which has been developed with support from the Royal College of General Practitioners.

Access at: thebraintumourcharity.org/headsmartgp