Inequities in Referral Speed for Diagnosing Bladder and Renal Cancer

Avoiding delays in cancer diagnosis is important to clinicians and patients alike, and can improve survival. Many individuals with urinary tract cancers initially present to primary care physicians (PCPs). To assess the effect of gender on promptness of referral to specialists, investigators analyzed data from an audit of primary care practices in England from 2009 to 2010.

Of 920 patients with bladder cancer (27% women) and 398 with renal cancer (42% women), the vast majority were 55 or older. Women were more likely than men to require ≥3 pre-referral consultations for bladder cancer (27% vs. 11%, P<0.001) and renal cancer (30% vs. 18%, P=0.025). Median interval from initial PCP visit to referral was modestly longer for women than men (6 da…