thirty-one/sixty-two pathway

thirty-one/sixty-two pathway

A term of art defined in the context of the UK’s so-called cancer targets, created in response to the 1995 Calman Hine report. The 31/62 pathway refers to usual route of referral and management of patients with cancer in the UK, which is based on a pair (the 31- and 62-day) of “targets”:
(1) Booking an appointment to see the appropriate consultant, usually an oncologist (popularly termed “14-day referral”), and
(2) Being seen within 31 days (the 31-day target) after an urgent referral for suspected cancer by the patient’s GP;
(3) The 62-day target is the goal of beginning the first definitive therapy, whether chemotherapy, radiation, or surgery, within 62 days of an urgent GP referral for suspected cancer. The “clock stops” as soon as therapy begins, or if the patient opts out of treatment.