Factors associated with delay in specialized treatment after diagnosis of cervical cancer in Bahia State, Brazil

Abstract

This study aimed to analyze factors associated with delay in specialized treatment after diagnosis of cervical cancer in the State of Bahia, Brazil. This was a cross-sectional hospital-based study of women treated in accredited units in the Hospital-Based Cancer Registry (HBCR) system in the State of Bahia from 2008 to 2017. A descriptive analysis and logistic regression were performed with backward stepwise modeling to estimate crude and adjusted prevalence ratios (PR), defining statistical significance as p ≤ 0.05 in Pearson's chi-square test. We analyzed 9,184 cases, and 65% had delayed treatment (time between diagnosis and first treatment > 60 days). Delayed treatment was more prevalent among women 65 years or older (PR = 1.30; 95%CI: 1.21-1.39), with no schooling (PR = 1.24; 95%CI: 1.15-1.33), and in advanced stages (PR = 1.17; 95%CI: 1.13-1.21). Most of the cases analyzed had delayed treatment, more prevalent among older women, with less schooling, and advanced tumor stages, highlighting the need to expand access to cancer treatment services in Bahia state, especially for these groups in worse conditions.