Do perceived barriers to clinical presentation affect anticipated time to presenting with cancer symptoms: an ICBP study

The International Cancer Benchmarking Partnership (ICBP) was established to investigate and explain international variation in cancer survival. Countries participating in this project include Australia, Canada, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and the UK. This current paper has focused on the relationship between barriers to visiting a GP and the anticipated time to help seeking for four cancer symptoms. Patient delay in presenting to their GP is an important element of diagnostic delay and a greater diagnostic interval in a number of cancers. The surey results of over 19,000 participants found that higher barrier scores were associated with longer anticipated time to help seeking. Anticipated time to help seeking was lowest in Australia compared to the five other participating countries. Overall, to improve early diagnosis, campaigns should recognize and address the emotional and practical barriers that influence patients visiting their GP when a cancer symptom first appears.   Read the full article here.