Black patients with medulloblastoma have a greater risk of death than patients of other races, according to research presented at the 20th International Symposium on Pediatric Neuro-Oncology (ISPNO).
Researchers conducted a population-based analysis to evaluate whether survival is affected by race/ethnicity in patients with medulloblastoma.
All data were obtained from the Surveillance Epidemiology & End Results Program database. Included patients were diagnosed between 2007 and 2016.
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Of the 1827 patients included, 58% were children (0-14 years), 30% were adolescents or young adults (15-39 years), and 12% were adults (40+ years).
The majority of patients (81%) were White, 27% were Hispanic, 9% were Black, and 8% were Asian/Pacific Islander. Most patients (62%) had private insurance, and 32% had Medicaid or public insurance.
The researchers found that 10-year overall survival was significantly worse for Black patients than for White patients (P =.00087). In a univariate analysis, Black patients had a significantly higher risk of death (hazard ratio [HR], 1.55; P = .003) compared with White patients.
However, there was no significant difference in the risk of death for Asian/Pacific Islander patients (HR, 1.17; P =.3) compared with White patients or for Hispanic patients (HR, 0.98; P = .8) compared with non-Hispanic patients.
Receiving either chemotherapy (HR, 0.48; P <.001) or radiation (HR, 0.45; P <.001) was associated with a lower risk of death. On the other hand, having Medicaid (HR, 1.23; P =.041) or being uninsured (HR, 2.07; P < .001) was associated with a higher risk of death.
The researchers noted that this is the largest study to date evaluating medulloblastoma outcomes in a contemporary and representative population. However, it is limited by its retrospective nature and a lack of some data.
Reference
Genecin I, Fullwood D, Moisander-Joyce H, et al. Outcome disparities in children, adolescents and young adults with medulloblastoma: A population-based analysis. Presented at ISPNO 2022; June 12-15, 2022. Abstract EPID-07.
