Residents of rural communities have decreased access to cancer screening and treatments compared to urban residents, though use of resources and patient outcomes have not been assessed with a comprehensive population-based analysis. The objectives of this study were to investigate whether breast cancer screening and treatments were utilized less frequently in rural BC and whether this translated into differences in outcomes.
All patients diagnosed with breast cancer in British Columbia (BC) during 2002 were identified from the Cancer Registry and linked to the Screening Mammography database. Patient demographics, pathology, stage, treatments, mammography use and death data were abstracted. Patients were categorized as residing in large, small and rural local health authorities (LHAs) using Canadian census information. Use of resources and outcomes were compared across these LHA size categories. We hypothesized that mastectomy rates (instead of breast-conserving surgery) would be higher in rural areas, since breast conservation is standardly accompanied by adjuvant radiotherapy, which has limited availability in rural BC. In contrast we hypothesized that cancer screening and systemic therapy use would be similar, as they are more widely dispersed across BC. Exploratory analyses were performed to assess whether disparities in screening and treatment utilization translated into differences in survival.
2,869 breast cancer patients were included in our study. Patients from rural communities presented with more advanced disease (p=0.01). On multivariable analysis, patients from rural, compared to urban, LHAs were less likely to be screening mammography attendees (OR=0.62; p
The objective of this study was to examine the patterns of severe injury documented at a northern British Columbia regional trauma center based on age, sex, month of year, activity type, injury type, and injury severity as they relate to participation in outdoor recreational activities.
A retrospective analysis of data abstracted from the British Columbia Trauma Registry for patients sustaining injuries between April 1, 2004, and March 31, 2007, while engaged in outdoor recreational activities in the Northern Health Authority. The British Columbia Trauma Registry inclusion criteria are as follows: 1) admitted for treatment of injuries sustained from the transfer of external energy or force; 2) admitted to the facility within 7 days of injury; and 3) length of stay more than 2 days or in-hospital mortality.
In all, 159 patients met study criteria. August and September were peak injury months (mean 7.3 and 7.0 per month, respectively). The highest injury patterns involved cycling (n = 31), all-terrain vehicle operation (n = 30), horseback riding (n = 22), and snowmobiling (n = 22). Of the 159 patients, 76.1% were male, with a peak age distribution between 10 years and 19 years (22%). Males were more commonly injured than females among cycling (83.9%), all-terrain vehicle (86.7%), and snowmobile (100%) traumas. Females were more commonly injured from horseback riding events (42.1%).
This study emphasizes the need for rapid translation of research findings into injury prevention awareness and programming in northern British Columbia, particularly relating to cycling, horseback riding, snowmobiling, and all-terrain vehicle operation. Further investigation is required to analyze long-term outcomes for this common injury population.
