Current work on the LARS iCAT project is focusing on the development of a new tool to capture the symptoms associated with LARS; lower anterior resection syndrome. This is a collection of symptoms that can occur following surgery for colorectal cancer which can have a severe impact of patients’ quality of life. The LARS iCAT will hope to assess these symptoms, the impact they have on patients’ quality of life and to reliably track these changes over time.
This new tool is in the process of being validated using patient input from the UK, North America and Australasia. This is being facilitated through The LARS collaborative, which is a global collective of experts and leaders in LARS, united by the shared goal of highlighting the importance of addressing this condition and its significant impact on quality of life. Together, the aim is to impact LARS by empowering patients, educating communities, and improving lives. Dr Laura Knight of CEDAR is part of this collaborative as the Senior Qualitative researcher and is the CEDAR lead on the LARS iCAT project.