Characteristics | Overall (n = 1572) | CRC (n = 214) | No CRC (n = 1358) | Significance |
---|---|---|---|---|
Age (years)a | 68 (20–96) | 74 (39–92) | 68 (20–96) | <0.001 |
Sex (male) | 810 (51.5 %) | 138 (64.5 %) | 672 (49.5 %) | 1.8 (1.3–2.5) |
Primary healthcare referral (yes) | 360 (22.9 %) | 67 (31.3 %) | 293 (21.6 %) | 1.6 (1.2–2.3) |
NICE referral criteria (yes) | 821 (52.2 %) | 146 (68.2 %) | 675 (49.7 %) | 2.2 (1.6–2.9) |
Symptoms | ||||
• Abdominal pain (yes) | 688 (43.8 %) | 75 (35.0 %) | 613 (45.1 %) | 0.7 (0.5–0.9) |
• Anal pain (yes) | 360 (22.9 %) | 39 (18.2 %) | 321 (23.6 %) | 0.7 (0.5–1) |
• Change in bowel habit (yes) | 899 (57.2 %) | 132 (61.7 %) | 767 (56.5 %) | 1.2 (0.9–1.7) |
• Rectal bleeding (yes) | 942 (59.9 %) | 141 (65.9 %) | 801 (59.0 %) | 1.3 (1–1.8) |
• Incomplete evacuation (yes) | 510 (32.4 %) | 69 (32.2 %) | 441 (32.5 %) | 1 (0.7–1.3) |
• Mucus on faeces (yes) | 178 (11.3 %) | 26 (12.1 %) | 152 (11.2 %) | 1.1 (0.7–1.7) |
• Asthenia (yes) | 671 (42.7 %) | 106 (49.5 %) | 565 (41.6 %) | 1.4 (1–1.8) |
• Weight loss (yes) | 385 (24.5 %) | 57 (26.6 %) | 328 (24.2 %) | 1.1 (0.8–1.6) |
Duration of symptoms | ||||
• <1 month | 97 (5.5 %) | 12 (5.6 %) | 75 (5.5 %) | 1.6 (0.8–3.1) |
• 1–12 months | 803 (51.1 %) | 140 (65.4 %) | 663 (48.8 %) | 2.1 (1.5–2.9) |
• >12 months | 682 (43.4 %) | 62 (29.0 %) | 620 (45.7 %) | 1 |
Previous colorectal diseases | ||||
• Diverticulitis (yes) | 64 (4.1 %) | 6 (2.8 %) | 58 (4.3 %) | 0.6 (0.3–1.5) |
• Irritable bowel syndrome (yes) | 32 (2.0 %) | 1 (0.5 %) | 31 (2.3 %) | 0.2 (0.02–1.5) |
• Polyps (yes) | 110 (7.0 %) | 5 (2.3 %) | 105 (7.7 %) | 0.3 (0.1–0.7) |
Colonoscopy in the last 10 years (yes) | 314 (20.0 %) | 10 (4.7 %) | 304 (22.4 %) | 0.2 (0.1–0.3) |
FDRs with CRC (yes) | 301 (19.1 %) | 21 (9.8 %) | 280 (20.6 %) | 0.4 (0.3–0.7) |
Treatment | ||||
• Aspirin (more than one year) | 224 (14.2 %) | 25 (11.7 %) | 199 (14.7 %) | 0.7 (0.5–1.2) |
• NSAIDs (yes) | 263 (16.7 %) | 27 (12.6 %) | 236 (17.4 %) | 0.7 (0.4–1.1) |
• Laxative treatment (yes) | 21 (1.3 %) | 1 (0.5 %) | 20 (1.5 %) | 0.3 (0.1–2.3) |
• Acenocoumarol (yes) | 124 (7.9 %) | 17 (7.9 %) | 107 (7.9 %) | 1 (0.6–1.7) |
• Clopidogrel (yes) | 60 (3.8 %) | 10 (4.7 %) | 50 (3.7 %) | 1.3 (0.6–2.6) |
Anorectal examination findings | ||||
• Rectal mass (yes) | 38 (2.4 %) | 31 (14.5 %) | 7 (0.5 %) | 32.6 (14.2–75.3) |
• Benign anorectal lesion (yes) | 646 (41.1 %) | 32 (15.0 %) | 614 (45.2 %) | 0.2 (0.1–0.3) |
Laboratory results | ||||
• Faecal haemoglobin (μg/g)b | 5.8 (0.0–5902) | 270 (0.0–1974) | 5.8 (0.0–5902) | <0.001 |
• Faecal calprotectin (ng/mL)b | 41.0 (0.0–5100) | 120 (13.0–1072) | 37.0 (0.0–5100) | <0.001 |
• Blood haemoglobin (g/dL)b | 13.5 (6.3–19.1) | 12.9 (7.2–17.8) | 13.6 (6.3–19.1) | <0.001 |
• Mean corpuscular volume (fL)b | 90.6 (56.7–118.7) | 89.1 (62.7–110.5) | 90.8 (56.7–118.7) | <0.001 |
• Serum CEA (ng/mL)b | 1.6 (0.0–3701) | 3.2 (0.1–2684) | 1.5 (0.0–3701) | <0.001 |