Factors related to delay in diagnosis of oral squamous cell carcinoma

Possible patient and professional factors related to delay in diagnosis of oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) were investigated and analyzed.

We collected patient data with a survey conducted by medical professionals through a questionnaire at one of the largest hospitals of stomatology in Beijing, China. Multiple logistic regression was applied to look for the correlation between patient delay and predictor variables: age, resident region, lesion site, primary signs and symptoms, and lesion size. A single-factor variance analysis was used to find the correlation between professional delay and other possible related clinical factors.

We investigated 102 consecutive patients with OSCC treated at the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Peking University Hospital of Stomatology, Beijing, China. Lesion site (P = .012) and maximal diameter of the lesion (P = .067) were inversely correlated with patient delay. Clinical variables such as whether biopsy was adopted at the initial clinical visit, length of time from the first clinical consultation to cytologic biopsy, the number of clinical departments in which patients were seen, and the necessity for any treatments before definitive diagnosis were significantly correlated with professional delay.

Lesions in the tongue and larger maximal diameter of the lesion caused longer patient delay in the diagnosis of OSCC. Whether biopsy was used at the initial management and its delay time were crucial factors to professional delay. Inappropriate clinical treatments before definitive diagnosis and the more referrals that the patient underwent prolonged the delay.