[Health care patterns and colorectal cancers. Study in the population of the Côte d'Or between 1976 and 1990].
OBJECTIVE
The goal of this study was to analyze the characteristics of colorectal cancer patients associated with the distribution of the incident cases in the health care pattern (public, private and mixed health care options) and to study the development of this distribution over time.


METHODS
The study concerned 3,403 cases of colorectal cancer diagnosed in the Côte-d'Or region, France between 1976 and 1990. The relationship between patient characteristics and the type of health care pattern was analyzed using a polychotomous logistic regression model.


RESULTS
Data analysis indicates an uneven patient distribution among the public (40.6%), private (47.3%) and mixed (12.1%) sectors. The proportion of patients received in the public sector increased with the age of the patient with a proportional decrease in private and mixed sectors: compared with patients under 65 years cared for in the public sector, the odds ratio characteristic of the private sector was 0.74 for the age group 65-74 and 0.44 for those over 74 years. The odds ratios characteristic of the mixed sector were 0.71 and 0.41 respectively. Cases demonstrating symptoms received care more often in the private sector (48.3%) than in the public (38.7%) or mixed (13%) sectors, whereas those diagnosed in patients with no digestive disorders as well as those diagnosed in emergency situations were mainly cared for in the public sector. Cancers in advanced stages were more often treated in the public sector. In the case of palliative treatment, the patients were more often treated in the public sector than in the private sector or mixed sector. This phenomenon was more marked in the case of symptomatic treatments: with curative treatment taken as the category of reference, the odds ratios associated with symptomatic treatment were 0.38 for the private sector and 0.18 for the mixed sector. Over the period of time examined, there was an increase in the proportion of patients receiving care in the private sector when they lived in the area serviced by Dijon or in areas without a health "structure". Patients residing in areas with a general hospital unchanged over time. Relatively disadvantaged social categories were more often associated with care in the public sector.


CONCLUSIONS
This study shows that the characteristics of colorectal cancer patients differ between the public and private sectors. It shows the differences in recruitment of health care structures according to the treatment of those patients. The study provides information useful in conceiving regional schemes of health care organisation.
Tazi
M A
MA
Registre Bourguignon des Tumeurs Digestives (Equipe associée INSERM-DGS), Faculté de Médecine de Dijon.
Roy
P
P
Liabeuf
A
A
Faivre
J
J
D000368:Aged; D002173:Cancer Care Facilities; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D005602:France; D016304:Hospitals, Private; D006779:Hospitals, Public; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors
Filières de soins et cancers colorectaux. Etude dans la population de la Côte-d'Or entre 1976 et 1990.