Perceived Importance of Breast Cancer Risk Factors: A Survey on 386 Physicians in China

Document Type : Short Communications

Authors

1 UNIMED Medical Institute, Hong Kong SAR, China.

2 Organisation for Oncology and Translational Research, Hong Kong SAR, China.

3 Department of Breast Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China

4 Department of Burn and Plastic Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China.

5 Department of Medical Oncology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, Xuhui District, Shanghai, China.

6 Breast Disease Centre, Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Chongqing, China.

7 Department of Breast Medical Oncology, Fujian Provincial Tumor Hospital, Fuzhou, China.

8 The Department of Breast and Bone Tissue Oncology, Affiliated Tumor Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, China.

9 Department of Breast Surgery, Guangzhou Women and Children’s Medical Center, Guangzhou, China.

10 Department of Breast Surgery, Affiliated Tumor Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China.

11 Department of Medical Oncology, Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China.

12 Department of Breast Cancer, Cancer Center, Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital and Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Guangzhou, China.

13 The Second School of Clinical Medicine, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.

14 Breast Center, Peking University People’s Hospital, Beijing, China.

15 Department of Medical Oncology, Sun Yat-Sen University Cancer Center, Guangzhou, China.

16 Department of Thyroid and Breast Surgery, Shenzhen Second People’s Hospital, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China.

17 Department of Breast Medical Oncology, Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences / Zhejiang Cancer Hospital/Institute of Cancer and Basic Medicine (ICBM), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, China.

18 Department of Medical Oncology, Hubei Cancer Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei, China.

19 Department of Breast Surgery, The Cancer Hospital of the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Zhejiang Cancer Hospital), Institute of Basic Medicine and Cancer (IBMC), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.

20 Department of Oncology, Sun Yat‐Sen Memorial Hospital of Sun Yat‐Sen University, Guangzhou, China.

21 Department of Thyroid and Breast Surgery, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.

Abstract

There are varying definitions of women at high risk of breast cancer across different institutions, and there are reports suggesting that the breast cancer risk assessment tools have not been well integrated into clinical practice. In this study, we tried to investigate the perceived importance of different breast cancer risk factors by physicians in China. A cross-sectional survey involving 386 anonymous physicians was conducted using a 20-item, 5-point Likert scale questionnaire. The Kruskal-Wallis test and post-hoc pairwise comparisons were used to compare the differences in response. Most of the respondents were either breast surgeons/specialists (n=161; 41.7%) or medical oncologists (n=151; 39.1%), and the results showed that the breast cancer risk factors were not perceived as equally important. The weighting of each risk factor also varied depending on the physician’s medical specialty, location of practice, and the number of years of clinical experience.  This study provides a more updated insight into the perceptions of physicians in China toward the breast cancer risk factors, as well as underlines the potential improvements in breast cancer risk assessment strategies that can be done.

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Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
Volume 23, Issue 2
February 2022
Pages 379-382

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History

  • Receive Date: 27 December 2021
  • Revise Date: 11 January 2022
  • Accept Date: 14 February 2022

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