ArticleBMC health services research2017
Explaining time elapsed prior to cancer diagnosis: patients' perspectives.
Article in BMC health services research, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers.
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Who cites it
19 citing papers in PubMed.
- Characteristics of Patients Diagnosed With Cancer After Emergency Medical Center Transport in Japan.Journal of general and family medicine · 2026Article
- Hospital follow-up adherence among screen-positive lung cancer utilizing a mobile LDCT in community in Hainan, China: a prospective cohort study.NPJ primary care respiratory medicine · 2026Article
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- Improving Access to Radiotherapy Services in Gauteng: Quantitative Analysis of Key Time Intervals from Diagnosis to Treatment.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Improving Cancer Diagnosis in Alberta, Canada: A Qualitative Study of Emergency Department Healthcare Providers' Perspectives on Diagnosing Cancer in the Emergency Setting.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2024Article
- Reduction in the diagnostic interval after the introduction of cancer patient pathways for colorectal cancer in northern Sweden.Scandinavian journal of primary health care · 2023Article
- Review
- Implementing and Sustaining Early Cancer Diagnosis Initiatives in Canada: An Exploratory Qualitative Study.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2021Article
- Persistent elevation of plasma vitamin B12 is strongly associated with solid cancer.Scientific reports · 2021Observational
- Article
- A qualitative exploratory study of delay in the presentation of gastrointestinal cancer.Journal of family medicine and primary care · 2021Article
- Patient experiences of the urgent cancer referral pathway-Can the NHS do better? Semi-structured interviews with patients with upper gastrointestinal cancer.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2020Article
- Parent's perspectives of the pathway to diagnosis of childhood cancer: a matter of diagnostic triage.BMC health services research · 2020Article
- Co-construction of health technology assessment recommendations with patients: An example with cardiac defibrillator replacement.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2020Article
- From symptom to cancer diagnosis: Perspectives of patients and family members in Alberta, Canada.PloS one · 2020Article
- The route to diagnosis of sarcoma patients: Results from an interview study in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.PloS one · 2020Article
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Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundCancer is the leading cause of death in Canada. Early cancer diagnosis could improve patients' prognosis and quality of life. This study aimed to analyze the factors influencing elapsed time between the first help-seeking trigger and cancer diagnosis with respect to the three most common and deadliest cancer types: lung, breast, and colorectal.
methodsThis paper presents the qualitative component of a larger project based on a sequential explanatory design. Twenty-two patients diagnosed were interviewed, between 2011 to 2013, in oncology clinics of four hospitals in the two most populous regions in Quebec (Canada). Transcripts were analyzed using the Model of Pathways to Treatment.
resultsPre-diagnosis elapsed time and phases are difficult to appraise precisely and vary according to cancer sites and symptoms specificity. This observation makes the Model of Pathways to Treatment challenging to use to analyze patients' experiences. Analyses identified factors contributing to elapsed time that are linked to type of cancer, to patients, and to health system organization.
conclusionsThis research allowed us to identify avenues for reducing the intervals between first symptoms and cancer diagnosis. The existence of inequities in access to diagnostic services, even in a universal healthcare system, was highlighted.
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