Factors affecting delay in the presentation of breast cancer symptoms among women in Gaza, occupied Palestinian territory: A cross-sectional survey

Objective: To identify factors related to women’s delay in presenting with breast cancer symptoms to improve earlier diagnosis in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt).
Design: Cross-sectional
Setting: Two government cancer hospitals.
Participants: A consecutive sample of 130 Palestinian women living in Gaza with newly diagnosed breast cancer were approached in the waiting rooms of cancer hospitals in Gaza between 1 January and 31 December 2017. 120 women took part and returned the completed questionnaire.
Primary and secondary outcome measures: Clinical information about breast cancer were collected from hospital cancer records. An interval of three months or more between women’s self-discovery of symptoms and their first presentation to a medical provider was considered as a delay.
Results: 94% (122/130) of women attending cancer hospitals in Gaza agreed to take part in the study. Their mean age was 51 years (range: 23-72), 33.6% (31/122) had a family history of breast cancer, and ...

研究目标：明确巴勒斯坦被占领土（Occupied Palestinian Territory，简称oPt）内女性乳腺癌症状就诊延迟的相关影响因素，以提升该区域的乳腺癌早期诊断水平。
研究设计：横断面研究
研究场景：两家公立肿瘤医院
研究对象：2017年1月1日至12月31日期间，在加沙地区肿瘤医院候诊室招募的130名新确诊乳腺癌的加沙巴勒斯坦女性连续样本；最终120名女性参与研究并返还完整问卷。
主要与次要结局指标：从医院肿瘤病历中收集乳腺癌相关临床信息；将女性自行发现症状至首次就诊医疗机构的间隔≥3个月定义为就诊延迟。
研究结果：加沙地区肿瘤医院的受访女性中，94%（122/130）同意参与本研究。受试者平均年龄为51岁（年龄范围23~72岁），其中33.6%（31/122）有乳腺癌家族史，且……