Healthcare seeking with colorectal cancer symptoms-results from two Danish population-based surveys in 2012 and 2022

Timely healthcare seeking with colorectal cancer (CRC) symptoms is crucial for treatment options. This study aims to 1. compare CRC symptom reporting and contact to the general practitioner (GP) in the Danish population in 2012 and 2022, 2. analyze the associations between sex, age and GP contact in 2012 and 2022, and 3. explore considerations about GP contact in 2022.

Nationwide surveys on symptoms and GP contact in 2012 and 2022 with 100,000 randomly selected adults invited in each. Four CRC symptom categories, GP contact, and six predefined considerations about GP contact were analyzed by descriptive statistics and multivariable logistic regression models.

We included 47,423 individuals in 2012, and 28,328 in 2022. Symptom reporting was similar in the two cohorts, whereas GP contact increased significantly. Abdominal pain prompted the highest GP contact in both years (36.1% in 2012; 44.3% in 2022), while changed bowel habits prompted the lowest (20.4% and 24.8%, respectively). Men had lower odds of GP contact than women for most symptom categories, and odds of seeking healthcare increased with age. Among those with no GP contact, half reported either knowing the cause of their symptom or expecting it to resolve on its own. Among those who reported rectal bleeding and no GP contact, 17% described embarrassment.

Despite the increased focus on CRC, many individuals with CRC symptoms reported that they knew the cause and expected it to go away on its own, indicating that they might not associate it with serious disease.