ArticleThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2022
Factors influencing symptom appraisal and help-seeking of older adults with possible cancer: a mixed-methods systematic review.
Article in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers.
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Who cites it
21 citing papers in PubMed, 27 citations in OpenAlex.
- Factors associated with help-seeking for urinary symptoms among Chinese patients with bladder cancer: A qualitative study.Asia-Pacific journal of oncology nursing · 2026Article
- Healthcare seeking with colorectal cancer symptoms-results from two Danish population-based surveys in 2012 and 2022.Scandinavian journal of primary health care · 2026Article
- Pathologic complete response and survival according to germline BRCA1/2 status in triple-negative breast cancer.Breast cancer (Tokyo, Japan) · 2026Article
- Neoplastic Disorders and Cardiovascular Comorbidities in Geriatric Patients: A Simple Association?Geriatrics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Sex differences in the associations between illness representations and behavioral intentions to seek early Alzheimer's detection in Chinese older adults.BMC geriatrics · 2026Article
- Factors Associated with Delays in Breast Cancer Diagnosis in Low- and Middle-income Countries: A Scoping Review.International journal of community based nursing and midwifery · 2026Review
- Trends and Drivers of Head and Neck Cancers in Older Adults Over 30 Years: A Population-Based Modelling Study.Risk management and healthcare policy · 2026Article
- Diagnostic testing patterns for lung cancer-related symptoms in primary care: a retrospective cohort study.BMJ open respiratory research · 2025Article
- Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and 'Find Cancer Early' campaign on cancer symptom knowledge in regional Western Australia.Journal of public health (Oxford, England) · 2025Article
- Around the EQUATOR With Clin-STAR: Systematic Reviews of Intervention Effectiveness; Challenges and Opportunities.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2025Article
- Attribution of colorectal cancer symptoms to medications for pre-existing chronic conditions: a secondary analysis of a vignette study in England.Journal of public health (Oxford, England) · 2025Article
- Are we ready? assessing effectiveness and implementation of cancer control strategies in primary care: a comprehensive review of systematic reviews.Family practice · 2025Review
- Relationship between symptoms, sociodemographic factors, and general practice help-seeking in 10 904 adults aged 50 and over.European journal of public health · 2025Article
- Facilitators and barriers to help-seeking behavior for symptoms in patients with lung cancer in China-a qualitative study.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Article
- Patient preferences for investigating cancer-related symptoms in Australian general practice: a discrete-choice experiment.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2024Article
- Challenges in understanding inequities in help-seeking for possible cancer symptoms.BMC global and public health · 2024Review
- Patterns and predictors of symptom burden and posttraumatic growth among patients with cancer: a latent profile analysis.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2024Article
- Cutaneous melanoma in older patients.BMC geriatrics · 2024Article
- Article
- Symptom appraisal and help seeking in males with symptoms of possible prostate cancer: a qualitative study with an ethnically diverse sample in London.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe cancer burden falls predominantly on older (≥65 years) adults. Prompt presentation to primary care with cancer symptoms could result in earlier diagnosis. However, patient symptom appraisal and help-seeking decisions involving cancer symptoms are complex and may be further complicated in older adults.
aimTo explore the effect of older age on patients' appraisal of possible cancer symptoms and their decision to seek help for these symptoms. DESIGN AND
settingMixed-methods systematic review.
methodMEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Cochrane Library, Web of Science Core Collection, ASSIA, the ISRCTN registry, and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence were searched for studies on symptom appraisal and help-seeking decisions for cancer symptoms by adults aged ≥65 years. Studies were analysed using thematic synthesis and according to the Synthesis Without Meta-Analysis guidelines.
resultsEighty studies were included with a total of 32 995 participants. Studies suggested a possible association between increasing age and prolonged symptom appraisal interval. Reduced knowledge of cancer symptoms and differences in symptom interpretation may contribute to this prolonged interval. In contrast, in the current study a possible association was found between increasing age and prompt help-seeking. Themes affecting help-seeking in older adults included the influence of family and carers, competing priorities, fear, embarrassment, fatalism, comorbidities, a desire to avoid doctors, a perceived need to not waste doctors' time, and patient self-management of symptoms.
conclusionThis review suggests that increasing age is associated with delayed cancer symptom appraisal. When symptoms are recognised as potentially serious, increasing age was associated with prompt help-seeking although other factors could prolong this. Policymakers, charities, and GPs should aim to ensure older adults are able to recognise potential symptoms of cancer and seek help promptly.
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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.