Peer-Reviewed Journal Details
Mandatory Fields
O'Mahony, M,McCarthy, G,Corcoran, P,Hegarty, J
2013
October
European Journal of Oncology Nursing
Shedding light on women's help seeking behaviour for self discovered breast symptoms
Validated
Optional Fields
Breast cancer Breast symptoms Help seeking behaviour Delay Oncology nursing CANCER SYMPTOMS PATIENT DELAY AWARENESS POPULATION DIAGNOSIS KNOWLEDGE PERCEPTIONS ENGLAND SURVIVAL BELIEFS
17
632
639
Purpose: To describe women's help seeking behaviour (HSB) and the associated influencing factors on self-discovery of a breast symptom.Methods: A descriptive, correlational survey design was used. Following ethical approval, survey data were collected from women (n = 449) attending the breast clinics of two large urban hospitals within the Republic of Ireland.Results: The majority of women (69.9%; n = 314) sought help (by visiting their General practitioner, GP) within one month, 30.1% (n = 135) delayed help seeking for more than one month following symptom discovery and 16.7% (n = 75) delayed for three months or more. The factors most significantly associated with delayed HSB were knowledge around symptom identity (Odds Ratio (OR) = 4.80, p = 0.005); ignoring the symptom and hoping it would go away (OR = 10.72, p < 0.001) and women's belief that the symptom would persist for a long time (OR = 1.18, p = 0.023). Being afraid on symptom discovery (OR = 0.37, p = 0.005) was associated with reduced risk of delayed HSB.Conclusions: It is encouraging to see that the majority of women who find a breast symptom seek help promptly. However, a small cohort of women delay seeking help from their GP. HSB is influenced by multiple factors which can impact on patient outcomes. Findings are important for oncology nurses who have a key role to play in promoting breast awareness, prompt help seeking and early detection and treatment of breast cancer, amongst women. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
10.1016/j.ejon.2013.03.012
Grant Details