Adjusted associations between patient–doctor continuity for different continuity-defining periods and time to referral and time to diagnosis of breast, colorectal, and lung cancer
| Outcome | Continuity-defining perioda | Time ratios (95% CI) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Breast cancer | Colorectal cancer | Lung cancer | ||
| Time to diagnosis | Before and after (primary analysis) | 1.00 (0.99 to 1.01) P= 0.90 | 1.01 (1.01 to 1.02) P<0.01 | 1.00 (0.99 to 1.00) P= 0.33 |
| Before | 1.00 (0.99 to 1.01) P= 0.75 | 1.02 (1.01 to 1.02) P<0.01 | 1.01 (1.00 to 1.01) P<0.01 | |
| After | 0.99 (0.99 to 1.00) P= 0.26 | 0.98 (0.98 to 0.99) P<0.01 | 0.98 (0.97 to 0.98) P<0.01 | |
| Time to referral | Before | 0.90 (0.85 to 0.95) P<0.01 | 0.99 (0.98 to 1.01) P = 0.44 | 1.01 (0.99 to 1.03) P= 0.34 |
↵a In relation to index consultation, up to 24 months pre-diagnosis.