Delay in treatment for breast cancer

Data about delay in receiving treatment were obtained from 162 women with newly diagnosed breast cancer. Delay was found to occur both before and after the woman presented to her general practitioner. Women tended to delay because they assumed that their symptoms were not serious or were due to something other than cancer, or because of their domestic responsibilities. Delays within the Health Service were mostly due to diagnostic or administrative problems. Particular difficulties arose where the doctors expected benign disease, where the symptoms were not typical of breast cancer and where the woman had a history of previous benign breast disease. Age, a family history of breast cancer and the status of the woman (NHS or private patient) did not appear to influence delay.