Breast cancer, the most common form of cancer in women, requires rapid surgery. Delaying such interventions leads to a reduced survival rate. This was the result of a US study analyzing the data of around 370,000 patients. An interval of more than eight weeks between diagnosis and operation already has a negative effect.
Capacity bottlenecks in hospitals – in recent years the Covid-19 pandemic with performance restrictions in inpatient areas and in private practice has often been mentioned – as well as other factors can lead to important medical interventions being delayed. In the USA, this is often due to a lack of or only partially functioning health insurance.
The scientists wrote of their main finding: ‘A delay of nine weeks or more before surgery was associated with a lower overall survival rate compared to surgery within the first four weeks.’ Overall, this meant a 15 percent increase in mortality.
