Assessment of Knowledge in Delayed Diagnosis of Patients Suffering From Breast Cancer in Peshawar

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is when breast cells mutate and become cancerous cells that multiply and form tumors. Delay diagnosis increases mortality rate and poor prognosis. OBJECTIVES: The aim was to study awareness regarding delayed diagnosis in breast cancer patients and seeking prompt medical consultation in case of any breast abnormalities such as mass, cyst or pain is the most effective preventive measure. METHODOLOGY: A cross-sectional study was conducted at the Institute of Radiotherapy and Nuclear Medicine in Peshawar from December 2020 to August 2021. Data was collected non-probability convenience sampling technique through a pre-structured questionnaire. The inclusion criteria included the female patients diagnosed with breast cancer aged 20 to 70 years who were admitted to the Institute of Radiotherapy and Nuclear Medicine. Moreover, the data was analyzed through SPSS version 26. The sample size was calculated through the OpenEpi calculator with a 95 % confidence interval and a 5% margin of error. The Chi-square was applied the association was significant and P-value was < 0.05. RESULTS: The total number of participants was N=226, the maximum participants (n=81, 35.8%) were in the fourth decade of life, followed by the (n=50, 22.1%) in the third decade. Lack of awareness caused a delay with n=92, 40.7% were unaware of their symptoms. A maximum number of participants n=90(40.4%) had taken more than 12 weeks to visit the doctor after encountering their first symptom. There was a strong association between the presentation of diagnosis and time interval with a p-value of 0.013. The significance of the study was to aware the women regarding the early symptoms of breast cancer and prevention. CONCLUSION: The finding of the study showed that delayed diagnoses were because lack of awareness and unavailability of health care services.