Background: Delay in seeking health care by breast cancer patients is associated with advanced stage of disease at presentation and poor survival rates. This study aimed to identify the reasons for delayed presentation and their association with various sociodemographic variables. Methods: A total of 200 female patients with abnormal clinical findings, ie, lump or palpable mass, were consecutively invited for this study. Diagnostic delay was defined as a consultation with a health care provider more than 3 months from the appearance of the first symptoms. Sociodemographic variables, presenting symptoms, knowledge about diseases and its symptoms, time between seeking medical attention after appearance of symptoms and causes of delayed presentation were investigated. Chi-squared and logistic regression tests for significance and associations were used. Results: Among 125 women with breast cancer fulfilling the inclusion criteria, aged 24–75 years, 88.8% (n=111) presented late (≥3 months) and 59% presented with advanced stage of disease (stage III/IV). The majority (65.6%) were older than 40 years of age, 99.2% were married, 60.8% had <8 years of education, 67.2% had poor social status, and 64.8% had a negative family history of any cancer type. Almost all patients (96%) complained about the presence of a painless lump in their breast. Ignorance of disease or the presence of painless lumps in the breast and low financial resources for therapy (81.1%) were the main variables associated with delayed presentation. Educational factors (P<0.001, OR 4.682) and social status (P<0.001, OR 1.8) were also associated with delayed presentation. Conclusion: Our study highlighted the variables associated with delayed presentation in Pakistani breast cancer patients. A significant number of patients presented late owing to misconceptions and poor knowledge about the disease and its symptoms, while illiteracy and poor social status were the major contributing factors for delayed presentation, resulting in an advanced presentation of disease and ultimately a decreased survival rate.

Polysaccharides are being extensively employed for the synthesis of silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) having diverse morphology and applications. Herein, we present a novel and green synthesis of Ag NPs without using any physical reaction conditions. Linseed hydrogel (LSH) was used as a template to reduce Ag⁺ to Ag⁰. AgNO₃ (10, 20, and 30 mmol) solutions were mixed with LSH suspension in deionized water and exposed to diffused sunlight. Reaction was monitored by noting the change in the color of reaction mixture up to 10 h. Ag NPs showed characteristic ultraviolet-visible (UV/Vis) absorptions from 410 to 437 nm in the case of sunlight and 397–410 nm in the case of temperature study. Transmission electron microscopy images revealed the formation of spherical Ag NPs in the range of 10–35 nm. Face-centered cubic array of Ag NPs was confirmed by characteristic diffraction peaks in powder X-ray diffraction spectrum. Ag NPs were stored in LSH thin films, and UV/Vis spectra recorded after 6 months indicated that Ag NPs retained their texture over the storage period. Significant antimicrobial activity was observed when microbial cultures (bacteria and fungi) were exposed to the synthesized Ag NPs. Wound-healing studies revealed that Ag NP–impregnated LSH thin films could have potential applications as an antimicrobial dressing in wound management procedures.