Table 4 Mean additional length of primary-care interval associated with primary-care investigations after adjustment for age, sex and NICE guideline referral category

From: Impact of investigations in general practice on timeliness of referral for patients subsequently diagnosed with cancer: analysis of national primary care audit data

   

Mean additional primary-care interval (in days) among patients where investigations were performed

 
  

Number of cases

Unadjusted

Adjusted for age, sex, and clinical presentation

P -value a

Colorectal

Not investigated

967

Reference

Reference

P<0.0001

 

Investigated

1144

26.7 (20.8–33.0)

25.7 (19.5–31.7)

 

Ovarianb

Not investigated

105

Reference

Reference

P<0.0001

 

Investigated

240

20.1 (13.6–27.5)

18.4 (12.2–25.5)

 

Lung

Not investigated

294

Reference

Reference

P<0.0001

 

Investigated

1200

21.8 (15.3–27.6)

23.6 (16.8–30.0)

 

Oesophagealb

Not investigated

293

Reference

Reference

P<0.0001

 

Investigated

220

25.3 (16.7–34.8)

22.3 (13.2–32.4)

 

Pancreaticc

Not investigated

81

Reference

Reference

P>0.05

 

Investigated

246

23.2 (5.0–38.1)

17.1 (−1.9–30.6)

 

Stomach

Not investigated

98

Reference

Reference

P<0.0001

 

Investigated

148

30.4 (15.1–48.2)

29.3 (14.0–45.8)

 
  1. Abbreviation: NICE=National Institute for Health and Care Excellence.
  2. a95% Confidence intervals were estimated using bias corrected and accelerated bootstrap. The P-value (P>0.05) presented for pancreatic cancer reflects that this 95% confidence interval crosses zero. For all other cancers bias corrected and accelerated bootstrap 99.99%confidence intervals were re-estimated for the same model and these also did not cross zero, P<0.0001 is correspondingly presented.
  3. b‘Possible referrals’ grouped with ‘No action’ in multivariable analysis because of small numbers.
  4. Age 15–44 years grouped with age 55–64 years because of small numbers.