NeutroD

Neutropenia is a common side effect of chemotherapy and is characterised by low levels of neutrophils, which are a type of white blood cell. This increases the likelihood of a patient further developing neutropenic sepsis, a life-threatening condition that causes approximately 800 deaths/year in England and Wales. Neutropenic sepsis is diagnosed via blood test which measures the levels of both neutrophils and a protein called C-reactive protein (CRP). If the blood test shows low levels of neutrophils and high CRP, then a patient is at risk of getting neutropenic sepsis. The standard of care for such patients is to receive antibiotics intravenously. This means the antibiotics, medication used to fight off the infection, are administrated directly into a vein in the arm whilst the patient awaits results (15min - 2hrs) from the blood test. 

The NeutroD study is looking to recruit patients who are at risk of neutropenia or neutropenic sepsis. They will be tested on the Neutrocheck device which will defect neutrophil and CRP levels using just a finger prick of blood and give a reading within ten minutes. The patient will then review their results using a colour chart and app. If Neutrocheck is as accurate as hospital laboratory tests, this could lead to the possibility of patients doing the tests at home so they would come into the hospital only if it was necessary and receive results much faster than current hospital result waiting times. This would further ensure antibiotic treatments is only administrated to patients who require it.