Travel time to hospital and treatment for breast, colon, rectum, lung, ovary and prostate cancer

Abstract The aim was to examine the effect of geographical access to treatment services on cancer treatment patterns. Records for patients in northern England with breast, colon, rectal, lung, ovary and prostate tumours were augmented with estimates of travel time to the nearest hospital providing s...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:European journal of cancer (1990) 2008-05, Vol.44 (7), p.992-999
Main Authors: Jones, A.P, Haynes, R, Sauerzapf, V, Crawford, S.M, Zhao, H, Forman, D
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accessibility
Adult
Aged
Biological and medical sciences
England
Female
Health Services Accessibility - statistics & numerical data
Hematology, Oncology and Palliative Medicine
Hospitalization - statistics & numerical data
Humans
Male
Medical sciences
Middle Aged
Neoplasms - therapy
Pharmacology. Drug treatments
Residence Characteristics
Time Factors
Travel
Travel time
Treatment
Tumors
Urban Health
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Summary:Abstract The aim was to examine the effect of geographical access to treatment services on cancer treatment patterns. Records for patients in northern England with breast, colon, rectal, lung, ovary and prostate tumours were augmented with estimates of travel time to the nearest hospital providing surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Using logistic regression to adjust for age, sex, tumour stage, selected tumour pathology characteristics and deprivation of place of residence, the likelihood of receiving radiotherapy was reduced for all sites studied with increasing travel time to the nearest radiotherapy hospital. Lung cancer patients living further from a thoracic surgery hospital were less likely to receive surgery, and both lung cancer and rectal cancer patients were less likely to receive chemotherapy if they lived distant from these services. Services provided in only a few specialised centres, involving longer than average patient journeys, all showed an inverse association between travel time and treatment take-up.
ISSN:0959-8049
1879-0852
DOI:10.1016/j.ejca.2008.02.001