Abstract: Introduction: Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women and the leading cause of cancer death. Breast cancer in Nigeria and other developing countries is characterized by late presentation and poor outcome mostly due to ignorance, superstition, self-denial, fear of mastectomy and unavailability of treatment facilities.
Objective: The aim of this study is to assess the duration of symptom of breast disease before presentation to the hospital and to correlate the duration with tumour stage.
Methodology: This is a prospective study carried out at the Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu University Teaching Hospital (COOUTH), Amaku-Awka. The study span from January, 2021 to December, 2023. All pre-menopausal patients presenting with histologically confirmed breast cancer who have not received any form of intervention were recruited into the study. The patients were all evaluated clinically and data recorded in the study proforma.
Results: A total of 147 female patients were recruited. The age of the study population ranged from 24 to 54 years with a mean of 40.92±7.98 years. The duration of breast lump before presentation range from 1-36 months with a mean duration of 10.02±8.06. 39(26.5%) out the total presented within five months of noticing a lump in their breast and 36 patients out the 39 have breast masses within 10cm in size. 108 (73.5%) patients presented six months and above after noticing a lump with 51 of them presenting with breast masses greater 10cm in widest diameter. The size of the breast masses and the duration showed a positive correlation, Pearson’s correlation +0.575 (0.00).
Conclusion: The study shows that majority of the breast cancer patients in our environment present more than 6 months after noticing their symptoms and this correlates with the size of the tumour at presentation.
Keywords: Breast cancer, Presentation, Duration.
Title: DURATION BEFORE PRESENTATION FOR BREAST CANCER PATIENTS IN A LOW RESOURCE ENVIRONMENT
Author: Madubogwu, Chimezie Innocent
International Journal of Healthcare Sciences
ISSN 2348-5728 (Online)
Vol. 13, Issue 1, April 2025 - September 2025
Page No: 469-472
Research Publish Journals
Website: www.researchpublish.com
Published Date: 21-July-2025
