Recognition of cancer warning signs and anticipated delay in help-seeking in a population sample of adults in the UK

Quaife, S. L., Forbes, L. J. L., Ramirez, A. J., Brain, K. E. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9296-9748, Donnelly, C., Simon, A. E. and Wardle, J. 2014. Recognition of cancer warning signs and anticipated delay in help-seeking in a population sample of adults in the UK. British Journal of Cancer 110 (1) , pp. 12-18. 10.1038/bjc.2013.684

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Abstract

Background: Not recognising a symptom as suspicious is a common reason given by cancer patients for delayed help-seeking; but inevitably this is retrospective. We therefore investigated associations between recognition of warning signs for breast, colorectal and lung cancer and anticipated time to help-seeking for symptoms of each cancer. Methods: Computer-assisted telephone interviews were conducted with a population-representative sample (N=6965) of UK adults age greater than or equal to50 years, using the Awareness and Beliefs about Cancer scale. Anticipated time to help-seeking for persistent cough, rectal bleeding and breast changes was categorised as >2 vs less than or equal to2 weeks. Recognition of persistent cough, unexplained bleeding and unexplained lump as cancer warning signs was assessed (yes/no). Associations between recognition and help-seeking were examined for each symptom controlling for demographics and perceived ease of health-care access. Results: For each symptom, the odds of waiting for >2 weeks were significantly increased in those who did not recognise the related warning sign: breast changes: OR=2.45, 95% CI 1.47–4.08; rectal bleeding: OR=1.77, 1.36–2.30; persistent cough: OR=1.30, 1.17–1.46, independent of demographics and health-care access. Conclusion: Recognition of warning signs was associated with anticipating faster help-seeking for potential symptoms of cancer. Strategies to improve recognition are likely to facilitate earlier diagnosis.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Publication
Status:	Published
Schools:	Medicine
Subjects:	R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC0254 Neoplasms. Tumors. Oncology (including Cancer)
Additional Information:	This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.
Publisher:	Springer Nature
ISSN:	0007-0920
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	13 May 2020
Date of Acceptance:	9 October 2013
Last Modified:	05 May 2023 10:05
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/79444

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