TWO in every five women diagnosed with ovarian cancer in England are diagnosed only after emergency hospital admission for their symptoms, a new national population-based study has found.
Women who were diagnosed after emergency admission were three times less likely to have early-stage cancer.
40.3% Diagnosed after Emergency Admission
Researchers analysed more than 28,000 women who were diagnosed with ovarian cancer in England between 2017 and 2021.
They linked cancer registry and hospital data, to estimate risk ratios around patient characteristics and cancer diagnoses 28 days after emergency admission.
The study found that 40.3% of women were diagnosed with ovarian cancer after emergency admission due to symptoms.
Disparities Facing Vulnerable Groups
Women aged 18 to 29 years and those older than 80 years were more likely to be diagnosed after emergency admission, with adjusted risk ratios of 42.7% and 54.9%, respectively.
Women from more deprived areas also faced a higher risk of being diagnosed post-admission, at 44.2%.
Conversely, those from the least deprived quintile of neighbourhoods had a risk of post-admission diagnosis of 37.8%.
Further, women who were severely frail had a substantially increased risk of an ovarian cancer diagnosis after an emergency hospital admission, at 68.6%.
This compared to 29.2% for those who were fit.
Post-Admission Cancer Stage
Women who present with emergency symptoms of ovarian cancer have a very poor prognosis.
Of the women who were diagnosed after emergency admission, 13.7% had stage 1 or 2, or early stage, ovarian cancer.
However, in women who were not diagnosed after emergency admission, 39.2% had early-stage cancer.
Clinical Implications
In identifying risk factors, the research marks a step towards the development of targeted interventions that can foster timely diagnosis and better patient care.
Researchers highlighted that these results are likely applicable to many other countries, calling for international action to develop mitigation strategies against diagnosis at the point of emergency.
Reference
Zachou G et al. Ovarian cancer diagnosis within 28 days after an emergency admission to hospital: national population-based study of patient risk factors and cancer characteristics using routinely collected data in England. BMJ Oncol. 2026;DOI:10.1136/bmjonc-2025-001053.
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