Well-educated cancer patients get better treatment: PhD research

Wednesday 20 June 2012

Well-educated cancer patients are more likely than others to be given high-tech treatment and ultimately have better survival chances, according to an Erasmus University researcher.

Mieke Aarts studied the medical records of over 250,000 patients treated for cancer between 1990 and 2008.

For example, she found low-skilled patients with prostate cancer are more often given hormone therapy and general radiation than well-educated men, who are more likely to be offered an operation an targeted radiation therapy.

Skills

The different treatment given to better-educated patients may be due to their communication skills, Aarts is quoted as saying in Wednesday's Volkskrant. 'If a doctor is talking to someone of equal educational standing he may explain more. He may also be more likely to offer experimental treatment,' Aarts said.

In addition, well-educated patients are likely to be better informed about treatment options, she said.

Comparing two groups with similar cancer, Aarts found 67% of well-educated prostate cancer sufferers had survived for 10 years, compared with 44% of the low-skilled.

The difference is partly due to other factors such as lifestyle and other illnesses, but the type of treatment was also important in determining survival rates, Aarts concludes.

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