title: Prevalence and Risk Factors for Patient Delay Among Women With Breast Cancer in Rural India.
abstract: Delay in seeking health care by women with breast cancer increases mortality risk. This study was conducted in rural India to identify risk factors associated with patient delay. A total of 212 women with primary breast cancer diagnosed between 2010 and 2012 were interviewed. Sociodemographic characteristics, time interval between seeking medical attention and appearance of symptoms, and reasons for delay were inquired. Patient delay was defined as more than 3 months between date of first symptoms and medical consultation. Logistic regression was applied to assess associations between potential risk factors and patient delay. Almost half the women with breast cancer experienced patient delay. Age more than 60 years (odds ratio = 4.9, 95% confidence interval = 1.3-18.0) was significantly associated with patient delay. Only 6.6% of patients had heard about breast self-examination. Significantly higher number of patients with delay presented with advanced clinical stage (P = .000). Health education programs should be introduced with specific strategies to shorten patient delay.
authors.affiliation: Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Sevagram, Wardha, India nitingangane@rediffmail.com.
authors.forename: Nitin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Gangane
authors.affiliation: Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Sevagram, Wardha, India.
authors.lastname: Anshu
authors.affiliation: Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Sevagram, Wardha, India.
authors.forename: Shiva
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Manvatkar
authors.affiliation: Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
authors.forename: Nawi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.affiliation: Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
authors.forename: Anna-Karin
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Hurtig
authors.affiliation: Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: San Sebastián
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007194:India; D016015:Logistic Models; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D061665:Time-to-Treatment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
keywords: breast cancer; patient delay; rural India; screening