Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41672613›Full record

ArticleBMJ global health2026

Time to diagnosis for breast, cervical and colorectal cancer in Zimbabwe and South Africa: a cross-sectional study.

Jennifer Moodley, Suzanne E Scott, Sarah Day, Bothwell T Guzha, Zvavahera M Chirenje, John E Ataguba, Dharmishta Parmar, Ekaterina Pazukhina, Jonathan Myles, Valerie A Sills and 3 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in BMJ global health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Epigenomes · 2026
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Jennifer MoodleySchool of Public Health, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa jennifer.moodley@uct.ac.za.ORCID 0000-0002-9398-5202
Suzanne E ScottWolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University, London, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-5536-9612
Sarah DaySchool of Public Health, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.
Bothwell T GuzhaDepartment of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Zimbabwe, Harare, Zimbabwe.
Zvavahera M ChirenjeBixby Centre for Global Reproductive Health, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, California, USA.
John E AtagubaHealth Economics Unit, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.
Dharmishta ParmarWolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University, London, UK.
Ekaterina PazukhinaWolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University, London, UK.
Jonathan MylesWolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University, London, UK.
Valerie A SillsWolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University, London, UK.
Sudarshan GovenderSchool of Public Health, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa.
Fiona M WalterWolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University, London, UK.
AWACAN-ED collaborator team

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionShorter time to diagnosis may lead to better cancer outcomes in Southern Africa. This study measured the time from symptoms to first healthcare visit (patient interval; PI) and diagnosis (diagnostic interval; DI) and associated factors for breast, cervical and colorectal cancer in Zimbabwe and South Africa (SA).

methodsA cross-sectional survey collected data on socio-demographics, cancer awareness, barriers to seeking care, symptoms, healthcare visits and diagnosis after recent cancer diagnosis. Cox regression was used to determine factors associated with PI and DI.

resultsThis study included 1021 participants (Zimbabwe 396, SA 625). Symptom and risk factor recall was low. Median PIs were shorter than DIs across cancers and regions. For breast cancer, those reporting more health-seeking barriers had longer PIs (Zimbabwe HR 0.801, 95% CI 0.703 to 0.913; SA HR 0.885, 95% CI 0.817 to 0.958), while greater emotional response to symptoms was associated with a shorter PI (Zimbabwe HR 1.194, 95% CI 1.101 to 1.295; SA HR 1.145, 95% CI 1.079 to 1.216). Interpreting a cervical symptom as serious (Zimbabwe) was associated with a shorter PI. DIs were longer in less-resourced regions and increased with number of healthcare visits before diagnosis. Significantly shorter DIs occurred when the first provider was a clinic doctor or specialist compared with a clinic nurse.

conclusionsEfforts to improve timely cancer diagnosis in Zimbabwe and SA should focus on supporting primary healthcare providers in managing and referring symptomatic patients, enhancing cancer symptom awareness and interpretation, and addressing barriers to care.

Indexed as

Breast NeoplasmsColorectal NeoplasmsDelayed DiagnosisUterine Cervical NeoplasmsAdultAgedCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPatient Acceptance of Health CareSouth AfricaTreatment DelayZimbabweAfricaAfrica South of the SaharaCancerCross-sectional surveyGlobal Health

Identifiers

PMID41672613
PMCPMC12911819

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

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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.