Social vulnerability and breast cancer: differentials in the interval between diagnosis and treatment of women with different sociodemographic profiles

This study aimed to identify the sociodemographic profiles of women diagnosed as breast cancer in the city of Belo Horizonte and to investigate its association with interval between diagnosis and treatment. A cross-sectional study from hospital records of 715 patients undergoing treatment between 2010 and 2013. Cluster analysis was used to delineate the profiles from the variables: age, color of the skin, education and cost of treatment. The association between profiles and intervals was investigated using multinomial logistic regression. Five profiles were identified: A (white skin color, years of schooling >15 and treatment through private healthcare systems); B (white skin color, years of schooling = 11 and treatment through the Unified National health System (SUS); C and D (brown skin color, years of schooling 11 and < 8 respectively, and SUS); E (black skin color, years of schooling < 8, and SUS). Profiles B, C, D and E were associated with increased diagnosis-to-treatment intervals regardless of cancer staging upon diagnosis; and profile E had 37- fold higher chances of interval > 91 days (OR: 37.26; 95% CI:11.91-116.56). Breast cancer patients with social vulnerability profiles wait longer for treatment even after overcoming harriers to access oncology units.