ReviewCancer epidemiology2022
Does changing healthcare use signal opportunities for earlier detection of cancer? A review of studies using information from electronic patient records.
Review in Cancer epidemiology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 22 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Diagnostic windows in non-neoplastic diseases: a systematic review.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2023Pooled it
- Performance of a Cell-Free DNA-Based Multi-cancer Detection Test in Individuals Presenting With Symptoms Suspicious for Cancers.JCO precision oncology · 2023Trial
- Health System Factors in Head and Neck Cancer Diagnosis: A HEADSpAcE Consortium Qualitative Study in Glasgow and Montevideo.Head & neck · 2026Article
- Prediagnostic prescription patterns in pancreatic cancer: a retrospective primary care cohort study.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026Article
- Prediagnostic primary care consultations and imaging in emergency-diagnosed versus referred patients with lung cancer: a population-based linked data study.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026Article
- Diagnostic Timing and Ovarian Cancer Survival.JAMA network open · 2026Article
- Longitudinal multisource clinical model for early lung cancer risk stratification and screening.BMJ health & care informatics · 2026Article
- Global epidemiology and burden of multiple myeloma from 1990 to 2021 with projections to 2045 based on the global burden of disease study 2021.Discover oncology · 2026Article
- Early detection of female-specific cancers using longitudinal healthcare records with a multichannel convolutional neural network.BMJ health & care informatics · 2026Article
- Diagnostic Delays in Thoracic Cancer Care: A Data-Linkage, Cohort Study between Primary Care, Hospital, and Registry Data.Health data science · 2026Article
- Symptom-related care and diagnoses before ovarian cancer detection: Patterns and differences by cancer stage.Gynecologic oncology · 2026Article
- Risk of cancer following presentation with new-onset atrial fibrillation using data from UK national databases.Europace : European pacing, arrhythmias, and cardiac electrophysiology : journal of the working groups on cardiac pacing, arrhythmias, and cardiac cellular electrophysiology of the European Society of Cardiology · 2025Article
- Interventions to improve timely cancer diagnosis: an integrative review.Diagnosis (Berlin, Germany) · 2025Review
- Diagnostic Window Prior to a Haematological Cancer Diagnosis and the Association With Patient Pathways: A Nationwide Register-Based Cohort Study on Healthcare Utilization in Denmark.European journal of haematology · 2025Article
- In-hospital mortality, readmission, and prolonged length of stay risk prediction leveraging historical electronic patient records.JAMIA open · 2024Article
- Clinical activity in general practice before sarcoma diagnosis: an Australian cohort study.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2024Article
- Trends in primary care blood tests prior to lung and colorectal cancer diagnosis-A retrospective cohort study using linked Australian data.Cancer medicine · 2024Article
- A taxonomy of early diagnosis research to guide study design and funding prioritisation.British journal of cancer · 2023Review
- Electronic safety-netting tool features considered important by UK general practice staff: an interview and Delphi consensus study.BJGP open · 2023Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundIt has been proposed that changes in healthcare use before cancer diagnosis could signal opportunities for quicker detection, but systematic appreciation of such evidence is lacking. We reviewed studies examining pre-diagnostic changes in healthcare utilisation (e.g. rates of GP or hospital consultations, prescriptions or diagnostic tests) among patients subsequently diagnosed with cancer.
methodsWe identified studies through Pubmed searches complemented by expert elicitation. We extracted information on the earliest time point when diagnosis could have been possible for at least some cancers, together with variation in the length of such 'diagnostic windows' by tumour and patient characteristics.
resultsAcross twenty-eight studies, changes in healthcare use were observable at least six months pre-diagnosis for many common cancers, and potentially even earlier for colorectal cancer, multiple myeloma and brain tumours. Early changes were also identified for brain and colon cancer sub-sites.
conclusionChanging healthcare utilisation patterns before diagnosis indicate that future improvements in diagnostic technologies or services could help to shorten diagnostic intervals for cancer. There is greatest potential for quicker diagnosis for certain cancer types and patient groups, which can inform priorities for the development of decision support tools.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.