Background: Late diagnosis of cancer may partly be explained by the fact that some patients do not seek health care promptly when experiencing an alarm symptom. Socioeconomic and demographic differences exist concerning knowledge and awareness of cancer alarm symptoms in the general population and socioeconomic differences are found in cancer incidence and survival. We therefore hypothesise that socioeconomic and demographic differences in health care-seeking behaviour are present among people with alarm symptoms.
Objectives: To analyse associations between health care seeking and socioeconomic and demographic factors among people reporting cancer alarm symptoms.
Methods: A questionnaire survey comprising 20000 people aged >20 from the Danish population. The questionnaire concerned alarm symptoms of common cancers and subsequent health care seeking. Data on socioeconomic factors were obtained from Statistics Denmark.
Main outcomes: health care seeking and patient interval.
Results: A total of 26.1% of all subjects reported that they did not seek health care when having experienced an alarm symptom. Women-subjects aged >40, subjects living with a partner and subjects having a cancer diagnosis-were more likely to seek health care, whereas medium educational level was negatively associated with health care seeking. Further, women were more likely to seek health care within 1 month, whereas subjects out of the workforce were less likely to do so.
Conclusions: Approximately three out of four subjects sought health care when having experienced an alarm symptom but 50% waited for at least 1 month. Some demographic factors were found to be associated with health care-seeking behaviour and the patient interval, whereas no consistent associations were found with regard to socioeconomics.
Keywords: Cross-sectional survey; demographic factors; family practice; health care-seeking behaviour; signs and symptoms; socioeconomic factors..