PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Mary L. McBride
AU  - Maria F. Lorenzi
AU  - Jacqueline Page
AU  - Anne-Marie Broemeling
AU  - John J. Spinelli
AU  - Karen Goddard
AU  - Sheila Pritchard
AU  - Paul Rogers
AU  - Sam Sheps
TI  - Patterns of physician follow-up among young cancer survivors
DP  - 2011 Dec 01
TA  - Canadian Family Physician
PG  - e482--e490
VI  - 57
IP  - 12
4099  - http://www.cfp.ca/content/57/12/e482.short
4100  - http://www.cfp.ca/content/57/12/e482.full
SO  - Can Fam Physician2011 Dec 01; 57
AB  - Objective To describe the frequency and pattern of physician visits in 1998 to 2000 among childhood and adolescent cancer survivors in British Columbia (BC), to compare their use of physician services with use in the general population, and to examine the effects of clinical and sociodemographic factors on care. Design Retrospective, observational, population-based cohort study, with a comparison group. Cohort records from population registries were linked to physician claim data and oncology visit records for 1998 to 2000. Setting Outpatient physician care in BC. Participants All (N = 1157) survivors of cancer diagnosed before age 20 years in BC between 1970 and 1992 who survived at least 5 years after diagnosis, and an age-sex frequency–matched population sample of 11 570 individuals. Main outcome measures Probability of a physician visit and frequency of physician visits. Results Approximately 97% of survivors saw at least 1 physician in the 3-year period, compared with 50% of the general population sample. The probability of a GP visit was 96% higher (adjusted 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.8 to 2.1), and the likelihood of a specialist visit was 157% higher (adjusted 95% CI 2.4 to 2.8) than for the general population. Survivors were more than twice as likely to see GPs at least 10 times (adjusted relative risk 2.23, 95% CI 2.0 to 2.4) and had 49% more visits than the general population. Cancer diagnosis and treatment affected visit patterns, but socioeconomic status and rural residency did not significantly affect the probability of a visit. Conclusion Demand for physician care among childhood and adolescent cancer survivors is considerably greater than for the general population, and this need persists many years after diagnosis. Physicians need information on the unique health care requirements of this patient group in order to provide appropriate care.