NSCLC: Researchers Identify Socioeconomic Factors Linked to Overall Survival

The following article features coverage from the IASLC 18th World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) in Yokohama, Japan. Click here to read more of Cancer Therapy Advisor‘s conference coverage.

Certain socioeconomic factors may predict for overall survival (OS) among patients with non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), according to research presented at the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) 18th Annual World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) in Yokohama, Japan.¹

Despite the recent advances in NSCLC treatment, outcome disparities exist in this patient group. For this retrospective study, researchers evaluated survival and socioeconomic data from 1,150,722 patients with NSCLC to determine particular factors that may predict OS.

All patients were diagnosed between 2004 and 2013. The majority of patients studied were Caucasian (86.4%), 10.6% of patients were African American, and Hispanic and Asian patients together made up less than 5% of the cohort. Nearly 97% of patients were insured, 81.7% lived in a metropolitan area, and 68.5% were treated at non-academic facilities.

The median OS for the entire cohort was 13.1 months. Compared with Caucasian patients, who had a median OS of 13.2 months, Asian patients (median OS: 18.2 months; hazard ratio [HR], 0.768) and Hispanic patients (median OS: 16.6 months; HR, 0.826) tended to have a longer OS. African American patients had a median OS of only 11.5 months.

Patients diagnosed between 2010 and 2013 tended to have a longer OS than those diagnosed between 2004 and 2009 (HR, 0.878).

Lack of insurance, a higher Charlson-Deyo comorbidity score, lower income, and treatment at a non-academic facility were all linked with a shorter OS.

Patients with tumor, node, and metastasis (TNM) stage IV disease at diagnosis were much more likely to have a shorter OS compared with those diagnosed with stage I disease (HR, 5.598).

The authors concluded that “patient race and socioeconomic factors were found to significantly influence NSCLC survival. These must be addressed for equitable health care benefit and outcomes.”

Read more of Cancer Therapy Advisor‘s coverage of the IASLC 18th World Conference on Lung Cancer (WCLC) by visiting the conference page.

Reference

1. Lou Y, Dholaria B, Soyano AE, Hodge D, Ailawadhi S. Socioeconomic factors affecting outcomes in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC): a large population-based analysis. Presented at: International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer 18th World Conference on Lung Cancer; Yokohama, Japan: October 15-18, 2017. Abstract OA 06.05.