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Mortality due to cancer treatment delay: systematic review and meta-analysis

BMJ · 2020 · Vol. 371 · pp. m4087–m4087

Timothy P. Hanna✉(Queen's University)Will D. King(Queen's University)Stéphane Thibodeau(Queen's University)Matthew Jalink(Queen's University)Gregory Paulin(Queen's University)Elizabeth Harvey-Jones(Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust)Dylan E. O’Sullivan(Queen's University)Christopher M. Booth(Queen's University)Richard Sullivan(King's College London)Ajay Aggarwal(King's College London)

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Abstract

Cancer treatment delay is a problem in health systems worldwide. The impact of delay on mortality can now be quantified for prioritisation and modelling. Even a four week delay of cancer treatment is associated with increased mortality across surgical, systemic treatment, and radiotherapy indications for seven cancers. Policies focused on minimising system level delays to cancer treatment initiation could improve population level survival outcomes.

Advances in Oncology and Radiotherapy Advanced Radiotherapy Techniques Economic and Financial Impacts of CancerMedicineHazard ratioRadiation therapyConfidence intervalMeta-analysisBreast cancerCancerInternal medicineSurgeryOncology