Could reliable data on breast cancer actually save lives?

Tiffanie Perrault and Erin Strumpf

CIRANO Papers from CIRANO

Abstract: One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime. In Canada, breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women of all ages, but the leading cause in women aged 30 to 49. Late diagnosis can worsen the disease and reinforce inequalities. In Quebec, delays in diagnosis are much longer than in Ontario or Alberta, where delays are the shortest in the country. An outdated cancer registry and a lack of standardization of care contribute to Quebec's delays. In this article, the authors explore the capabilities, performance and innovations of breast cancer diagnosis in Quebec, and compare them to those in other provinces. In their view, Quebec can and must do better by strengthening its commitment to innovative policies and developing effective methods for collecting comprehensive, standardized, up-to-date and accessible data. These efforts are essential, both for health care planning and for the advancement of research. Une femme sur huit recevra un diagnostic de cancer du sein au cours de sa vie. Au Canada, le cancer du sein est la deuxième cause de décès par cancer chez les femmes de tous âges, mais la première cause chez les femmes de 30 à 49 ans. Les retards de diagnostic peuvent aggraver la maladie et renforcer les inégalités. Au Québec, les délais de diagnostic sont nettement plus longs qu’en Ontario ou en Alberta où les délais sont les plus courts du pays. Un registre du cancer désuet et un manque de normalisation des soins contribuent aux retards du Québec. Dans cet article, les auteures explorent les capacités, performances et innovations en matière de diagnostic de cancer du sein au Québec et les comparent à celles d’autres provinces. Selon elles, le Québec peut et doit faire mieux en renforçant son engagement à l’égard de politiques novatrices et en développant des méthodes efficaces pour recueillir des données exhaustives, standardisées, à jour et accessibles. Ces efforts sont essentiels, tant pour la planification des soins que pour l’avancement de la recherche. Lire le rapport complet

Keywords: Cancer; Health; Public health; Breast cancer; Screening; Healthcare performance; Diagnosis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024-11-26
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hea
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:cir:circah:2024pj-09

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