Factors Associated with Time to Sarcoma Diagnosis: Results from a Global Cross-Sectional Survey by the Sarcoma Patient Advocacy Global Network (SPAGN)
Timely and accurate sarcoma diagnosis remains a global challenge. Prolonged routes to diagnosis appear to be driven by modifiable structural and socioeconomic factors, including misdiagnosis, limited specialist expertise, and unclear referral pathways, rather than tumor-related characteristics. These findings highlight the need to enhance awareness, streamline referral processes, and expand access to specialized care to reduce avoidable prolonged routes to diagnosis and improve patient outcomes worldwide.
Authors
- Kathrin Schuster (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3120-5207)
- G. van Oortmerssen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0661-0833)
- Matthew Sha (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2845-0874)
- Lauren Pretorius (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8743-3196)
- Denise K. Reinke (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8662-7060)
- Roger Wilson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6043-7306)
- Ornella Gonzato (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6541-1228)
- Bernd Kasper (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8425-8356)
- Vandana Gupta (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9299-801X)
- Verena Loidl
Institutions
- University of British Columbia (CA)
- Zimmer Biomet (Netherlands) (NL)
- Heidelberg University (DE)
- University of Michigan (US)
- University Hospital Heidelberg (DE)
- Foundation Center (US)
- Cancer Association of South Africa (ZA)
- University Medical Centre Mannheim (DE)
- Technical University of Munich (DE)
- Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Cancers
- Published
- 2026-04-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers18081256
- Primary Topic
- Sarcoma Diagnosis and Treatment
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Deciphera Pharmaceuticals
- Servier
- Ipsen