Lung cancer survival in Aotearoa New Zealand may rely on whether you’ll be able to access a GP – raising questions on equity within the country's health system.
our New research examines outcomes in patients diagnosed with lung cancer by their GP versus those diagnosed within the emergency department (ED).
Examining 2,400 lung cancer diagnoses within the Waikato between 2011 and 2021, we found that individuals diagnosed with lung cancer after an ED visit were more more likely to have later-stage disease and a diagnosis after GP referral. There are worse outcomes than what happened.
We also found after assessment that ED attendance was 27% higher for Māori than non-Māori and 22% higher for men than women.
These findings raise vital questions on health inequalities in New Zealand and highlight the necessity to make sure that everyone seems to be capable of access early cancer diagnosis.
Limited access to routine health care
Currently Half of all general practices have closed their books. For recent patients, 290,000 patients are usually not registered and depend on emergency departments for his or her health care.
Almost 80% of practices have closed their books to recent patients since 2019.
For those entering a practice. Waiting times for appointments Often times, going to the ED for assistance is the one option.
This is very true in rural areas where the hospital may turn into the default route of diagnosis.
Lung cancer is the only leading explanation for cancer death in New Zealand. 1,800 per annum. About 80 percent of those diagnosed with lung cancer present with advanced disease and a poor likelihood of survival.
It can also be the cancer with the most important equity gap. Māori death rates from lung cancer are three to 4 times higher than those of European descent.
Although much of this disparity is as a result of differences in smoking rates between ethnic groups, Evidence Delays in diagnosis and poor access to surgery even have major impacts on survival rates.
Identifying lung cancer
Lung cancer often starts within the tissue lining the airways and early symptoms may be relatively mild – some shortness of breath during exercise, a pointy cough or sharp pain when respiratory.
Patients with these kinds of symptoms often go to a GP to envision if it's something that needs further investigation.
But if someone can't get an appointment, or doesn't think the symptoms are serious, there's more likely to be a delay in motion for them.
Advanced symptoms of lung cancer include coughing up blood or a lump within the neck as a result of lymphatic spread of the cancer. People with these dangerous symptoms go to the hospital for treatment.
Our study confirms earlier findings that those diagnosed by the emergency department are:
- Advanced disease is more likely
- It is more more likely to be a more aggressive sort of cancer (called Small cell cancer), and
- Chances of survival are pretty poor.
Median survival for individuals who never visited the ED was 13.6 months, while median survival for those with one ED visit was only three months.
That said, there are some advantages to attending the emergency department. These include being seen by a physician inside hours, immediate access to X-rays and, in our major hospitals, access to the last word diagnostic tool for lung cancer – a computed tomography (CT) machine.
Our study found that 25% of cases visited the ED two or more times within the two weeks before diagnosis. This was particularly true for those attending one among the Waikato's rural hospitals, where a second or third visit was more likely before a diagnosis was made.
Barriers to care.
It is evident that there are still many barriers to primary care in New Zealand. This results in a greater reliance on emergency departments for cancer diagnosis, despite an extended history. Cure cancer faster Goals
The situation is unlikely to enhance. In part, access to GPs is getting worse. Increase in fees.
There were Māori and Pacific patients with lung cancer. Less likely They were enrolled in a primary health care organization after they were diagnosed, in comparison with other ethnic groups. They were also less more likely to have visited a GP within the three months before diagnosis.
Making seeing a GP easier
Making general practice care more accessible is probably the most effective option to address the inequities in our lung cancer statistics.
Currently, New Zealand only has 74 GPs per 100,000 People in comparison with 110 in Australia.
It is evident that we want to substantially increase the variety of GPs. This is a long-term plan but must be a strategic goal for the health sector.
In the meantime, we want to make primary care more accessible by increasing patient subsidies and reducing direct patient costs to see a physician. At the identical time, we want to raised equip GPs with access to diagnostic facilities, including in our rural hospitals.