Preventive medicine
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A study of system delay, the time between the initial medical consultation and the establishment of a diagnosis, in breast cancer patients revealed that almost 40% of women reported delays of at least 4 weeks. The objective of this study was to explore the reasons for these prolonged intervals between initial medical consultation and establishment of a diagnosis. ⋯ This study looked at the issue of how the behaviors of women and their providers contribute to the timing of breast cancer diagnosis. It is one of the only studies to examine the woman's role in delay. It is clear from this study that additional work is needed to look at this question. However, the results of this study suggest that efforts must be made to reduce the time needed to get an appointment with a physician or a diagnostic test, as well as to educate physicians and the women themselves regarding the importance of breast symptoms and the value of prompt evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment.
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Preventive medicine · Jan 1996
Can risk factor modification reduce cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in minority populations?
It appears that landmark epidemiological studies have shown that certain conditions and/or environmental factors to increased risk for developing certain diseases, in this instance cardiovascular diseases. These conditions have been labeled risk factors, so it appears that many of the variables, i.e., risk factors, which lead to diseases have been identified. Since many of them are alterable, they could be altered in a favorable direction. ⋯ Senators and other government agents should strongly encourage people to employ techniques to reduce risk factors for cardiovascular diseases, i.e., insurance companies should pay for training, educational sessions, and participation in activities/programs which are aimed at informing or instructing the public on how to reduce risk factors. This would be a preventive approach for medical conditions and would be much better than waiting until conditions requiring pharmacological or surgical intervention develop. The health care reform bill should have a built-in component to promote techniques and methodologies to reduce the probability of developing medical conditions.