Incidentally diagnosed cancer and commonly preceding clinical scenarios: a cross-sectional descriptive analysis of English audit data.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

Cancer can be diagnosed in the absence of tumour-related symptoms, but little is known about the frequency and circumstances preceding such diagnoses which occur outside participation in screening programmes. We aimed to examine incidentally diagnosed cancer among a cohort of cancer patients diagnosed in England.

Design

Cross-sectional study of national primary care audit data on an incident cancer patient population.

Setting

We analysed free-text information on the presenting features of cancer patients aged 15 or older included in the English National Audit of Cancer Diagnosis in Primary Care (2009-2010). Patients with screen-detected cancers or prostate cancer were excluded. We examined the odds of incidental cancer diagnosis by patient characteristics a

SUBMITTER: Koo MM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6756358 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature