INTRODUCTION: In the Philippines, lung, breast, colon-rectum, and oral cavity cancers are among the top 10 most common cancers. This study evaluates the risk factors for these cancers among Filipinos.

METHODS: This age-matched case-control study included incident primary cancers (histologically-diagnosed) of the lung, breast (also matched for sex), colon-rectum and oral cavity. Controls (clinically free and no history of cancer) were obtained from the same tertiary hospitals as the cases. Target sample size was 283 cases and 283 controls per cancer type. Conditional logistic regression was done.

RESULTS: Exposure to cigarette/tobacco was a significant risk factor for lung (OR of current smoker compared to non-smoker [95% Confidence Interval]: 3.6 [1.6-7.9]) and oral cavity cancers (2.0 [1.2-3.3]); family history (1st degree) for lung (4.3 [1.314.2]) and breast cancers (3.0 [1.2-7.5]); every year increase in age at first pregnancy for breast cancer (1.06 [1.02-1.11]). Other risk factors for oral cavity were passive smoking (2.8 [1.6-5.1]), chewing tobacco (5.2[1.4-19.5]) and inverted cigarette smoking (3.2[1.3-8.1]). Fish sauce (patis) was found to be a protective factor for breast cancer (0.34 [0.22-0.51]) and oral cavity (0.44 [0.25-0.78]) and use of shrimp paste (bagoong) (0.48 [0.27-0.84]) for oral cavity.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS: Except for family history of cancer, the identified risk factors for lung, colon-rectum, and oral cavity cancers are preventable. Proper diet and lifestyle, avoidance of cigarettes and tobacco, and environmental safety in the workplace are key cancer prevention measures. Public awareness campaign and continuing healthcare provider education must always be part of a cancer prevention program.

Pregnancy ; Tobacco ; Tobacco, Smokeless ; Tobacco Smoke Pollution ; Cigarette Smoking ; Rectum ; Smokers ; Smoking ; Breast Cancer 3 ; Breast Neoplasms ; Mouth Neoplasms ; Health Personnel ; Colon

OBJECTIVE. The main aim of this study was to determine patient satisfaction with nursing care (PSNC) in the medical wards of the UP-Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH) using a valid and reliable locally developed UP-PGH PSNC questionnaire.

METHODS. The survey utilized a cross-sectional study design and was conducted in the medical wards of the UP-PGH in 2006. A total of 237 patients were included in the survey.

RESULTS. Over a third or 34.3% (95% CI 28%, 40%) and 35% (95% CI 26%, 44%) were highly satisfied with their experience regarding the nurses caring attitude and the nurses skill/competence respectively. Fewer respondents were highly satisfied with the nurses as information providers, with only 17.2% (95% CI 12%, 22%) saying they were highly satisfied. A little over half or 57.8% (95% CI 52%, 64%) were highly satisfied in the overall evaluation of care.

CONCLUSION. The patients were satisfied with the nursing care provided in two dimensions: The nurse as a caring person and the nurse as a skilled and competent health care provider, although only about a third indicated that they were highly satisfied. Nevertheless, 57.8% were highly satisfied in the overall evaluation of care, but these patients may have considered other hospital services and cost. Other factors that might affect patient satisfaction need to be explored and the use of other evaluation tools to augment these findings is recommended.

Human ; Male ; Female ; Middle Aged ; Adult ; Young Adult ; Patient Satisfaction ; Empathy ; Hospitals, General ; Philippines ; Surveys And Questionnaires ; Personal Satisfaction ; Self Care ; Health Personnel

Background and Objective: The burden of treatment delay in breast cancer is high, especially among developing countries. Despite adversely affecting morbidity and mortality, treatment delay remains unexplored in the Philippines. This study aimed to determine treatment delays among breast cancer patients in a tertiary hospital during surgery, neoadjuvant chemotherapy, and adjuvant chemotherapy, and to identify predictors of delay. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among breast cancer patients seen between January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2018. The following outcomes were investigated: ≥90 days from initial diagnosis to surgery, ≥8 weeks from diagnosis to initiation of neoadjuvant chemotherapy, and >120 days from diagnosis to initiation of adjuvant chemotherapy. Summary statistics were reported as percent for categorical data and as mean for continuous data. The individual correlations were performed using Chi-square for qualitative data and t-test for quantitative data while predictors were determined through logistic regression. Results: A total of 324 patients were included in this study. The majority of the patients were less than 65 years old living in urban areas. More than half of the patients were overweight or obese, hypertensive, and diabetic. The following delays were observed: 61.1% (n = 198) with any type of delay, 23.8% (n = 53) with delay in surgery, 53.8% (n = 120) with delay in adjuvant chemotherapy, and 74.3% (n = 75) with delay in neoadjuvant chemotherapy. The patients noted to have any type of delay were more likely to be hypertensive (p = 0.046) and residing in urban areas (p = 0.041). There were no differences in the distribution of age, body mass index, and presence of co-morbid conditions such as hypertension, diabetes mellitus, coronary artery disease, and heart failure among those with any form of delay compared with no delay. Conclusions The present study shows the presence of treatment delay among breast cancer patients and may be used to enact policy changes to optimize breast cancer care delivery. Further studies may be done to identify other factors affecting these delays and policy changes are recommended to address these gaps in surgery and chemotherapy administration among breast cancer patients.
breast cancer ; quality of care ; treatment delays

Background and Objective: Primary care providers are key players in providing quality care to patients and advancing Universal Health Care (UHC). However, effective and quality healthcare delivery may be affected by inadequate knowledge and failure to adhere to evidence-based guidelines among providers. The Philippine Primary Care Studies (PPCS) is a five-year program that pilot tested interventions aimed at strengthening the primary care system in the country. Evidence-based training modules for healthcare providers were administered in Sorsogon and Bataan from the years 2018 to 2021. Module topics were selected based on common health conditions encountered by providers in rural and remote settings. This program aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of training in increasing provider knowledge. Methods: A series of training workshops were conducted among 184 remote- and 210 rural-based primary care providers [nurses, midwives, barangay or village health workers (BHWs)]. They covered four modules: essential intrapartum and newborn care (EINC), integrated management of childhood illness (IMCI), non-communicable diseases (NCD), and geriatrics. A decision support system (UpToDate) was provided as a supplementary resource for all participants. We administered pre-tests and post-tests consisting of multiple-choice questions on common health conditions. Data was analyzed using paired one-tailed t-test, with an alpha of 0.05. Results: The knowledge of nurses, midwives, and BHWs improved after the training workshops were conducted. The largest increase from pre-test to post-test scores were observed among the midwives, with a mean difference (MD) of 32.9% (95% CI 23.9 to 41.9) on the EINC module, MD of 25.0% (95% CI 16.6 to 33.4) in the geriatrics module, and MD of 13.5% (95% CI 6.9 to 20.1) in the NCDs module. The nurses had the greatest improvement in the IMCI module (MD 10.8%, 95% CI 2.5 to 19.1). The knowledge of BHWs improved in all participated modules, with greatest improvement in the NCD module (MD 9.0%, 95% CI 5.77 to 12.14). Conclusions Primary care workshops, even if conducted as single-sessions and on a short-term basis, are effective in improving short-term knowledge of providers. However, this may not translate to long-term knowledge and application in practice. Furthermore, comparisons across provider categories cannot be made as participant composition for each training workshop varied. Ultimately, this study shows enhancing provider knowledge and competence in primary care will therefore require regular and diverse learning interventions and access to clinical decision support tools.
Capacity Building ; Health Workforce ; Philippines ; Primary Health Care