Data from shop loyalty cards could help spot ovarian cancer

Doctors who have been running a study say that tracking what shoppers buy via loyalty-card data can help detect those with early signs of cancer.

They found that frequent purchases of over-the-counter painkillers and indigestion tablets revealed a higher risk of ovarian cancer, which is often diagnosed late.

There is no reliable screening test and the symptoms, such as bloating, can be vague and commonly confused with other harmless conditions.

Symptoms include indigestion, abdominal or pelvic pain, swollen or bloated stomach, and needing to urinate more often.

Early diagnosis of the disease improves the chances of successful treatment.

Dr James Flanagan, lead author of the Cancer Research UK-funded work, said “The cancer symptoms we are looking for are very common – but for some women, they could be the first signs of something more serious.

“Using shopping data, our study found a noticeable increase in purchases of pain and indigestion medications among women with ovarian cancer, up to eight months before diagnosis, compared with women without ovarian cancer.

“This suggests that long before women have recognised their symptoms as alarming enough to go to the GP, they may be treating them at home.”

The researchers worked with two High Street retailers and 283 female customers, who agreed to share their shopping data going back six years.  More than half had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

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Posted by Karen Motley, Clinical Negligence Department, Chadwick Lawrence LLP (tonymay@chadlaw.co.uk ), medical negligence lawyers and clinical negligence solicitors in Huddersfield, Leeds, Wakefield and Halifax, West Yorkshire.

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