Welcome to inSPIRE, the Somerset NHS Portal for Improvement, Research and Evidence.

Here you can find research, improvement, evidence insights and knowledge assets contributed to by healthcare and other professionals across Somerset, curated by the Knowledge & Library Service at Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, in collaboration with the Improvement team.

Explore, learn, and be inspired by the knowledge at your fingertips!

If you would like to include your research & improvement outputs in the portal, please either complete our online submission form, or contact inspire@somersetft.nhs.uk

You can find out more about the inSPIRE repository from our website.

Recent Submissions

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    Prognostic value of EndoPredict test in patients with hormone receptor-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-negative primary breast cancer screened for the randomized, double-blind, phase III UNIRAD trial.
    (Elsevier, 2024-04-30) Penault-Llorca, F; Dalenc, F; Chabaud, S; Cottu, P; Allouache, D; Cameron, D; Grenier, J; Venat Bouvet, L; Jegannathen, A; Campone, M; Debled, M; Hardy-Bessard, A-C; Giacchetti, S; Barthelemy, P; Kaluzinski, L; Mailliez, A; Mouret-Reynier, M-A; Legouffe, E; Cayre, A; Martinez, M; Delbaldo, C; Mollon-Grange, D; Macaskill, E J; Sephton, M; Stefani, L; Belgadi, B; Winter, M; Orfeuvre, H; Lacroix-Triki, M; Bonnefoi, H; Bliss, J; Canon, J-L; Lemonnier, J; Andre, F; Bachelot, T; Oncology; MedicalAndDental; Sephton, Matthew
    The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prognostic value of the multigene EndoPredict test in prospectively collected data of patients screened for the randomized, double-blind, phase III UNIRAD trial, which evaluated the addition of everolimus to adjuvant endocrine therapy in high-risk, hormone receptor-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative early breast cancer.
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    Management of unscheduled bleeding on HRT: A joint guideline on behalf of the British Menopause Society, Royal College Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, British Gynaecological Cancer Society, British Society for Gynaecological Endoscopy, Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health, Royal College of General Practitioners and Getting it Right First Time.
    (Sage, 2024-05-14) Manley, Kristyn; Hillard, Timothy; Clark, Justin; Kumar, Geeta; Morrison, Jo; Hamoda, Haitham; Barber, Katie; Holloway, Debra; Middleton, Bronwyn; Oyston, Maria; Pickering, Mark; Sassarini, Jenifer; Williams, Nicola; Gynaecology; MedicalAndDental; Morrison, Jo
    Unscheduled bleeding on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) can affect up to 40% of users. In parallel with the increase in HRT prescribing in the UK, there has been an associated increase in referrals to the urgent suspicion of cancer pathway for unscheduled bleeding. On behalf of the British Menopause Society (BMS) an expert review panel was established, including primary and secondary care clinicians with expertise in the management of menopause, with representatives from key related organisations, including the Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists, the British Gynaecological Cancer Society, British Society for Gynaecological Endoscopy, Royal College of General Practitioners and Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health, and service development partners from NHS England and GIRFT (Getting it Right First Time). For each topic, a focused literature review was completed to develop evidence led recommendations, where available, which were ratified by consensus review within the panel and by guideline groups.
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    Analysis of the effect of staple line reinforcement on leaking and bleeding after sleeve gastrectomy from the UK National Bariatric Surgery Registry.
    (Wiley, 2024-07-03) Niaz, Osamah; Askari, Alan; Currie, Andrew; McGlone, Emma Rose; Zakeri, Roxanna; Khan, Omar; Welbourn, Richard; Pring, Chris; Small, Peter; Al-Taan, Omer; Mahawar, Kamal; Mamidanna, Ravikrishna; Upper GI and Bariatric Surgery; MedicalAndDental; Welbourn, Richard
    Introduction: Sleeve gastrectomy (SG) is currently the most frequently performed procedure for obesity worldwide. Staple line reinforcement (SLR) has been suggested as a strategy to reduce the risk of staple line leak or bleeding; however, its use for SG in the United Kingdom (UK) is unknown. This study examined the effect of SLR on the development of postoperative complications from SG using a large national dataset from the UK. Methods: Patients undergoing either primary or revision SG over 10 years from Jan 2012 to Dec 2021 were identified by the National Bariatric Surgery Registry. Comparative and logistic regression analyses were undertaken to determine the effect of SLR on staple line leak and bleeding. Results: During this time, 14,231 patients underwent SG for whom there were complete data. Of these, 76.5% were female and the median age was 46 years (IQR: 36-53). The rate of surgical complications was 2.3% (n = 219/14,231). The incidence of bleeding was 1.3% (n = 179/14,231) and leak was 1.0% (n = 140/14,231). Over time, the use of SLR of any variety declined significantly from 99.7% in 2012 to 57.3% in 2021 (p < 0.001). Multivariable (adjusted) regression analysis demonstrated that neither the use of nor the type of reinforcement had any effect on the rate of bleeding or leaking. Conclusion: SLR for SG has declined in the UK since 2012. There were no differences in staple line leak or bleed with or without reinforcement.
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    Efficacy and tolerability of levetiracetam in people with and without intellectual disabilities: A naturalistic case control study.
    (Elsevier, 2024-05-16) Allard, Jon; Sellers, Adrian; Henley, William; McLean, Brendan; Parrett, Mary; Rajakulendran, Sanjeev; Watkins, Lance; Maguire, Melissa; Ellawela, Shan; Tittensor, Phil; Bransgrove, Juliet; Sen, Arjune; Mohanraj, Rajiv; Bagary, Many; Ram, Sunil; Vernon, Nathan; Baldwin, Sandy; Gill, Jagdish; Shankar, Rohit; Learning Disabilities Medication (Mental Health); MedicalAndDental; Ram, Sunil
    People with Intellectual Disabilities (PwID) are twenty times more likely than general population to have epilepsy. Guidance for prescribing antiseizure medication (ASM) to PwID is driven by trials excluding them. Levetiracetam (LEV) is a first-line ASM in the UK. Concerns exist regarding LEV's behavioural and psychological adverse effects, particularly in PwID. There is no high-quality evidence comparing effectiveness and adverse effects in PwID to those without, prescribed LEV. Pooled casenote data for patients prescribed LEV (2000-2020) at 18 UK NHS Trusts were analysed. Demographics, starting and maximum dose, adverse effects, dropouts and seizure frequency between ID (mild vs. moderate-profound (M/P)) and general population for a 12-month period were compared. Descriptive analysis, Mann-Whitney, Fisher's exact and logistic regression methods were employed.
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    Real world study of sacituzumab govitecan in metastatic triple-negative breast cancer in the United Kingdom.
    (Nature, 2024-04-24) Hanna, Daire; Merrick, Sophie; Ghose, Aruni; Devlin, Michael John; Yang, Dorothy D; Phillips, Edward; Okines, Alicia; Chopra, Neha; Papadimatraki, Elisavet; Ross, Kirsty; Macpherson, Iain; Boh, Zhuang Y; Michie, Caroline O; Swampillai, Angela; Gupta, Sunnia; Robinson, Tim; Germain, Lewis; Twelves, Chris; Atkinson, Charlotte; Konstantis, Apostolos; Riddle, Pippa; Cresti, Nicola; Naik, Jay D; Borley, Annabel; Guppy, Amy; Schmid, Peter; Phillips, Melissa; Oncology; MedicalAndDental; Atkinson, Charlotte
    Background: Treatment options for pre-treated patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (mTNBC) remain limited. This is the first study to assess the real-world safety and efficacy of sacituzumab govitecan (SG) in the UK. Methods: Data was retrospectively collected from 16 tertiary UK cancer centres. Pts had a diagnosis of mTNBC, received at least two prior lines of treatment (with at least one being in the metastatic setting) and received at least one dose of SG. Results: 132 pts were included. Median age was 56 years (28-91). All patients were ECOG performance status (PS) 0-3 (PS0; 39, PS1; 76, PS2; 16, PS3;1). 75% (99/132) of pts had visceral metastases including 18% (24/132) of pts with CNS disease. Median PFS (mPFS) was 5.2 months (95% CI 4.5-6.6) with a median OS (mOS) of 8.7 months (95% CI 6.8-NA). The most common adverse events (AEs) were fatigue (all grade; 82%, G3/4; 14%), neutropenia (all grade; 55%, G3/4; 29%), diarrhoea (all grade; 58%, G3/4, 15%), and nausea (all grade; 38%, G3/4; 3%). SG dose reduction was required in 54% of pts. Conclusion: This study supports significant anti-tumour activity in heavily pre-treated pts with mTNBC. Toxicity data aligns with clinical trial experience.

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