The diagnosis and prognosis for 135 women with breast cancer and 99 women with ovarian cancer in a well-defined geographical area, and a follow-up of 7-15 years are described, based on patients' records. Diagnosis was initiated in primary care for 53% of women with breast cancer, and for 57% of women with ovarian cancer. Median patient delay was 1 week for breast cancer, and 3.5 weeks for ovarian cancer patients, and median provider delay was 3 weeks for both groups. Crude, relative, and corrected 5-year survival was 73%, 91%, and 82% in breast cancer, and 40%, 49%, and 43% in ovarian cancer. Cox multiple regression analyses showed that stage IIIA and IV, and young age were associated with impaired disease-related survival in breast cancer. In patients with ovarian cancer, stages III and IV at diagnosis, old age, and systemic symptoms dominating at presentation were predictive of reduced disease-related survival while a family history of cancer was predictive of increased survival.