The Timeliness of Drug Therapy in Colorectal and Prostate Cancer in Antigua and Barbuda: The Role of Disease Stage

TL;DR

This study examines how the stage of colorectal and prostate cancers affects the timing of drug therapy initiation in Antigua and Barbuda.

Contribution

The study provides evidence on drug therapy timeliness in low-resource settings, focusing on Antigua and Barbuda.

Findings

Disease stage was not a significant predictor of time to drug therapy initiation for either cancer type.

The odds ratios for colorectal and prostate cancers showed wide confidence intervals, indicating uncertainty.

The study suggests that other patient characteristics should be considered alongside disease stage for better predictions.

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Colorectal and prostate cancers are significant public health problems for countries globally. In Antigua and Barbuda, where resources are limited, there is a need for both insight and evidence on the timeliness of drug therapy initiation for colorectal and prostate cancers as a way of improving disease management capabilities and prognostic outcomes for diagnosed cases. This study aimed to investigate whether the disease stage of colorectal and prostate cancers is a predictor of the time to drug therapy initiation for persons diagnosed with these cancers in Antigua and Barbuda from 2017 to 2021. Methods: This was a retrospective analytical study that utilized data, inclusive of the coronavirus disease 2019 effect, for colorectal and prostate cancer patients extracted from four study sites in Antigua and Barbuda to assess the relationship between disease stage and time to drug therapy initiation. Analyses were performed using polytomous multivariable logistic regression modelling. Results: Analyses showed that the final models for both cancers were significant (p < 0.05); however, disease stage was not a predictor of time to drug therapy initiation in either model. The ORs observed were 41.58 (95% CI: 0.78–2219.28) for colorectal cancer and 0.41 (95% CI: 0.11–1.44) for prostate cancer. Conclusions: Regarding both cancers, our findings demonstrate that disease stage alone is not a significant predictor of time to drug therapy initiation unless analysed alongside other essential patient characteristics in each respective model. Our findings are a useful reference that can be utilized by policymakers to improve treatment capabilities, including establishing a standardized care algorithm to optimize timeliness in administering drug treatment for these cancers in Antigua and Barbuda.