Erratum: Time to diagnosis and mortality in colorectal cancer: a cohort study in primary care

Factors affecting delay in diagnosis of colorectal cancer: A cross-sectional study from a tertiary care hospital of Karachi, Pakistan

BACKGROUND

Colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence is increasing in our region. There is no specific CRC control programme or national cancer registry in Pakistan. Previously, no data have been published on presentation delay and diagnosis delay of CRC in our region. This study is conducted to determine the factors affecting delay in presentation and diagnosis and to provide baseline information to launch a CRC control programme. The primary objective is to determine factors causing delay in diagnosis of CRC. The secondary objective is to evaluate the relationship between tumour site and stage of CRC with presenting symptoms and symptom duration.

METHODS

This project is a prospective cross-sectional study on 113 biopsy-proven CRC patients admitted to the surgical ward of Civil Hospital Karachi.

RESULTS

The total number of participants was 113. Presentation delay was observed in 83.2% of patients. The main reasons for a reported delay in the presentation were lack of patients' knowledge that these symptoms may be cancer (60.4%), the wrong diagnosis by the primary physician (34.6%) or the patient did not want to visit the doctor (0.04%). Most tumours (95%) originated from the sigmoid and rectum; 44.2% and 38.9% of the patients were diagnosed at Stages 3 and 4, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

This study revealed that CRC patients in Pakistan are facing delays in presentation and diagnosis. This is the reason behind diagnosis at the advanced stage with a poor prognosis. On the basis of this study findings, CRC control programme should be introduced to detect CRC at an early stage.

Delay in Presentation, Diagnosis and Treatment for Colorectal Cancer Patients in Jordan

PURPOSE

Colorectal cancer (CRC) ranked first among cancers reported in males and second among cancers reported in females in Jordan in 2010. There has been no specific CRC-control programme in Jordan. Additionally, there has been no published study from Jordan or its neighbours on patient delays in presentation, diagnosis or treatment. Therefore, we conducted this study to assess these important quality indicators aiming to improve prognosis for CRC and to provide baseline data for future health promotion programmes for CRC in Jordan.

METHODS

This project was a cross-sectional study on CRC patients at Al Bashir Hospital, Ministry of Health, and at the Military Oncology Centre of the Jordanian Royal Medical Services.

RESULTS

The total number of participants was 189. The proportion of patients with presentation delay, diagnosis delay or treatment delay was 33.9, 68.1 and 32.6%, respectively. The main reasons reported for delay in presentation were lack of knowledge that symptoms were suggestive of cancer (58.5%), misdiagnosis by physicians or pharmacists (38.4%) or the patient did not want to visit a doctor (3.1%). Predictors of delay and mean time for presentation, diagnosis and treatment were identified.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results revealed that CRC patients in Jordan experience delays in presentation, Powered by Editorial Manager® and ProduXion Manager® from Aries Systems Corporation diagnosis, and, to a lesser degree, in treatment. This could justify the advanced stages at diagnosis and poor outcomes for CRC patients. Our findings provide baseline information for future CRC-control programmes in Jordan. We recommend that CRC prevention programmes in Jordan focus on early detection of CRC and target both patients and physicians.