A new American Cancer Society study of 12 types of cancer among more than 3.5 million cancer patients between 1998 and 2004 finds uninsured patients were significantly more likely to present with advanced-stage cancer compared with patients with private insurance. The study, which appears in the March issue of The Lancet Oncology, finds that the strongest association between insurance status and advanced cancer was for cancers that can be detected early by screening or evaluation of symptoms.
Compared with patients with private insurance, uninsured as well as Medicaid patients had significantly increased likelihoods of being diagnosed with cancer at more advanced stages compared with patients with private insurance for many cancer sites. The greatest increase in risk of more advanced-stage diagnosis among both uninsured and Medicaid-insured occurred for cancer sites that are part of routine screening (e.g., breast, colorectal) or sites with symptoms present at early stages (melanoma, urinary bladder).
The study also found that African-American patients were significantly more likely to be diagnosed at a more advanced stage for many cancers, indicating that beyond the effects of health insurance, other barriers likely exist for those patients related to early diagnosis and prompt medical care. Read the report summary.
