Jess's Rule to be advertised in all GP clinics in England to prevent avoidable deaths

A system urging doctors to rethink if a patient has had three appointments without a diagnosis, known as Jess's Rule, will be advertised in all GP practices in England from this week.

The rule is named after 27-year-old Jessica Brady, who contacted her surgery 20 times in six months before she died from cancer in 2020.

Jess's Rule encourages GPs to seek a second opinion, order more tests and see patients face-to-face for an examination when they have had three appointments with no diagnosis, or if their symptoms have worsened.

The "three strikes and rethink" approach was rolled out in September last year to help doctors avoid missing serious illnesses such as cancer and prevent avoidable deaths.

Posters advertising Jess's Rule have been distributed to all 6,170 GP clinics in England, and will encourage doctors to challenge their initial assumptions.

Ms Brady, an engineer for Airbus, contacted her GP surgery reporting symptoms such as abdominal pain, coughing, vomiting and weight loss.

After being offered virtual appointments due to pandemic restrictions and prescribed medications including antibiotics and steroids. She was also told she may be suffering from long COVID.

Ms Brady was finally diagnosed with cancer, which had spread throughout her body, after her mother paid for her to see a doctor privately.

She died in hospital three weeks later.

Ms Brady's mother, Andrea Brady, said the charity set up in her daughter's name has been "heartened" by the response from primary care.

"Throughout her illness, Jess showed a quiet determination that her experience should lead to meaningful change, inspiring the launch of Jess's Rule in September last year," she said.

"I am so incredibly proud of my caring and courageous daughter."

Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: "Every patient deserves to be heard, and every serious illness deserves to be caught early."

"Jess's Rule makes that possible - reminding clinicians to take a fresh look when symptoms persist, and empowering patients to speak up about their care," he said.

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The posters were co-designed by DHSC, NHS England and Jess's parents Andrea and Simon Brady.

GP surgeries will also receive a letter from Mr Streeting and NHS England's national medical director Dr Claire Fuller to stress the importance of Jess's Rule.

"Encouraging GP teams to challenge a diagnosis when it matters most could save lives by avoiding missed or late diagnoses, and I'd like to thank Andrea and Simon Brady and the Jessica Brady CEDAR Trust for funding and providing their important insights to develop the posters," Dr Fuller said.

Research by Nuffield Trust and the Health Foundation found that half of 16 to 24-year-olds required three or more interactions with a GP clinic before being diagnosed with cancer, compared with one-in-five across the population.

(c) Sky News 2026: Jess's Rule to be advertised in all GP clinics in England to prevent avoidable deaths