BACKGROUND: Colorectal cancer incidence is increasing in our region. There is no specific CRC control program or national cancer registry in Pakistan. Previously no data has been published on presentation delay and diagnosis delay of CRC in our region. This study is conducted to determine the factor affecting delay in presentation and diagnosis and to provide baseline information to launch a CRC control program. Primary objective is to determine factor causing delay in diagnosis of CRC. Secondary objective is to evaluate relationship between tumor 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: A 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 didn't want to visit the doctor (0.04%). Most tumors (95%) originated from the sigmoid and rectum. 38.9% and 44.2% of the patients diagnosed at Stage 4 and 3 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. Based on this study findings CRC control program should be introduced to detect CRC at an early stage. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
BACKGROUND:Colorectal cancer incidence is increasing in our region. There is no specific CRC control program or national cancer registry in Pakistan. Previously no data has been published on presentation delay and diagnosis delay of CRC in our region. This study is conducted to determine the factor affecting delay in presentation and diagnosis and to provide baseline information to launch a CRC control program. Primary objective is to determine factor causing delay in diagnosis of CRC. Secondary objective is to evaluate relationship between tumor 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: A 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 didn't want to visit the doctor (0.04%). Most tumors (95%) originated from the sigmoid and rectum. 38.9% and 44.2% of the patients diagnosed at Stage 4 and 3 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. Based on this study findings CRC control program should be introduced to detect CRC at an early stage. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Authors: María Padilla-Ruiz; María Morales-Suárez-Varela; Francisco Rivas-Ruiz; Julia Alcaide; Esperanza Varela-Moreno; Irene Zarcos-Pedrinaci; Teresa Téllez; Nerea Fernández-de Larrea-Baz; Marisa Baré; Amaia Bilbao; Cristina Sarasqueta; Urko Aguirre-Larracoechea; José María Quintana; Maximino Redondo Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2022-03-18 Impact factor: 3.390