[Effect of waiting time for radiotherapy on five-year overall survival in women with cervical cancer, 1995-2010]

Factors associated with delay in specialized treatment after diagnosis of cervical cancer in Bahia State, Brazil

This study aimed to analyze factors associated with delay in specialized treatment after diagnosis of cervical cancer in the State of Bahia, Brazil. This was a cross-sectional hospital-based study of women treated in accredited units in the Hospital-Based Cancer Registry (HBCR) system in the State of Bahia from 2008 to 2017. A descriptive analysis and logistic regression were performed with backward stepwise modeling to estimate crude and adjusted prevalence ratios (PR), defining statistical significance as p ≤ 0.05 in Pearson's chi-square test. We analyzed 9,184 cases, and 65% had delayed treatment (time between diagnosis and first treatment > 60 days). Delayed treatment was more prevalent among women 65 years or older (PR = 1.30; 95%CI: 1.21-1.39), with no schooling (PR = 1.24; 95%CI: 1.15-1.33), and in advanced stages (PR = 1.17; 95%CI: 1.13-1.21). Most of the cases analyzed had delayed treatment, more prevalent among older women, with less schooling, and advanced tumor stages, highlighting the need to expand access to cancer treatment services in Bahia state, especially for these groups in worse conditions.

Tratamento ambulatorial do câncer do colo do útero em tempo oportuno: a influência da região de residência de mulheres no Estado de Minas Gerais, Brasil

O objetivo deste estudo é investigar se há associação entre as Regiões Ampliadas de Saúde (RAS) de residência de Minas Gerais, Brasil, e o intervalo entre diagnóstico e início de tratamento de mulheres que realizaram tratamento ambulatorial (quimioterapia ou radioterapia) para câncer do colo do útero pelo Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS), entre 2001 e 2015. Trata-se de um estudo transversal, recorte de uma coorte, com 8.857 mulheres. Para avaliar a associação da RAS de residência e o intervalo entre diagnóstico e início de tratamento (em dias), foram utilizados modelos de regressão binomial negativa, considerando nível de significância de 5%. Os modelos foram construídos usando blocos de covariáveis sociodemográficas, clínicas e relacionadas ao tratamento. Foi determinado que a RAS de residência das mulheres está associada ao intervalo entre o diagnóstico e o início de tratamento. A RAS Norte foi a região do estado onde a média de tempo para iniciar o tratamento foi menor, e não residir nessa RAS aumenta a média de tempo para iniciar o tratamento entre 24% e 93% em comparação com outras RAS do estado. Fica evidente a disparidade no intervalo entre diagnóstico e início de tratamento entre as regiões do Estado de Minas Gerais. A disponibilidade de serviços habilitados para o tratamento do câncer nas RAS não reflete necessariamente em maior agilidade para início de tratamento. Compreender os fluxos das Redes de Atenção Oncológica e suas diferenças regionais é fundamental para aprimorar políticas públicas que garantam o cumprimento de leis vigentes, como a Lei nº 12.732/2012, que preconiza o início do tratamento de pacientes com câncer em até 60 dias após o diagnóstico.

Factors associated with delay in specialized treatment after diagnosis of cervical cancer in Bahia State, Brazil

This study aimed to analyze factors associated with delay in specialized treatment after diagnosis of cervical cancer in the State of Bahia, Brazil. This was a cross-sectional hospital-based study of women treated in accredited units in the Hospital-Based Cancer Registry (HBCR) system in the State of Bahia from 2008 to 2017. A descriptive analysis and logistic regression were performed with backward stepwise modeling to estimate crude and adjusted prevalence ratios (PR), defining statistical significance as p ≤ 0.05 in Pearson’s chi-square test. We analyzed 9,184 cases, and 65% had delayed treatment (time between diagnosis and first treatment > 60 days). Delayed treatment was more prevalent among women 65 years or older (PR = 1.30; 95%CI: 1.21-1.39), with no schooling (PR = 1.24; 95%CI: 1.15-1.33), and in advanced stages (PR = 1.17; 95%CI: 1.13-1.21). Most of the cases analyzed had delayed treatment, more prevalent among older women, with less schooling, and advanced tumor stages, highlighting the need to expand access to cancer treatment services in Bahia state, especially for these groups in worse conditions.

A Comparison of Different Schemes of Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy Followed by Concurrent Chemotherapy and Radiotherapy for Locally Advanced Cervical Cancer: A Retrospective Study

Purpose

To examine the clinical significance of unoperated cervical cancer patients treated with different neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) schemes followed by concurrent chemotherapy and radiotherapy (CCRT).

Methods

This retrospective analysis included women with locally advanced cervical cancer treated with NACT-CCRT between September 2011 and September 2014. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy included paclitaxel plus cisplatin (TP group; 62 patients) or paclitaxel plus loplatin (TL group; 58 patients), which were administered three weekly, and cisplatin or loplatin, which were administered weekly for synchronous chemotherapy. External beam radiation therapy (50.4–56.35 Gy/28 f, 180–215 cGy/f, 5 f/w) was followed by intracavitary brachytherapy (5 Gy per fraction, mostly 5 fractions, Ir192 based).

Results

One hundred twenty women were included in the analysis. The complete/partial response rate was 99.2% after treatment. The one-year, three-year, and five-year survival rates were 99.2%, 82.5%, and 70.8%, respectively. In the TP and TL groups, the three-year and five-year survival rates were 85.5% vs 77.6% and 75.8% vs 65.5%, respectively, with no significant difference. The 5-year overall survival (OS) rates between patients with stage IIB and stage IIIB disease were not significantly different (69.2% vs 64.7%). In the TP group, grade 3 or 4 digestive reactions were more frequent than those in the TL group. Leukopenia, neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia were more common in the TL group. No significant difference was found in anemia, radiation enteritis, radiation proctitis, or radiation cystitis between the groups.

Conclusion

Lobaplatin may be used as an alternative drug for patients with severe digestive system reactions or contraindications to cisplatin, but hematological toxicity must be considered, particularly in dose-intensive schemes. Neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by concurrent chemotherapy and radiotherapy (NACT-CCRT) warrants further prospective study in cervical cancer patients with a wide range of tumor invasion (eg, mass size ≥5 cm or stage IIIB).

Factors associated with delays in time to treatment initiation in Colombian women with cervical cancer: A cross-sectional analysis

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Cervical cancer is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in Colombia.

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Delays in time to treatment initiation have been associated with poor prognosis.

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Only 12.41% of women were treated within the 30 days from diagnosis.

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Median time to treatment initiation was longer in women under chemotherapy.

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Social disparities were associated with delays in time to treatment initiation.

Cervical cancer (CC) is one of the leading causes of morbidity in upper-middle income countries such as Colombia. Several studies have reported poor prognosis when treatment is delayed. We aimed to describe the factors associated with delays in time to treatment initiation (TTI) in Colombian women with CC. Cross-sectional analysis including newly diagnosed cases of CC during 2018 and reported to the National Administrative Cancer Registry. TTI was defined as days from diagnosis to the first treatment (chemotherapy, radiation, or surgery). Linear and multinomial logistic regression models were estimated to analyze the association of interest. 1,249 new cases of CC were analyzed (26.98% in-situ and 40.11% locally advanced). The median age was 46 years (IQR: 36–58). Median TTI was 71 days (IQR: 42–105), varying from 70 days (IQR: 43–106) among the surgery group to 76 days (IQR: 41–118) in women under chemotherapy. Only 12.41% were treated within 30 days from diagnosis. TTI was significantly longer in women with state insurance (β = 18.95 days, 95% CI: 11.77–26.13) compared with those insured by the third payer. Women from the Pacific and Eastern regions also had a significantly longer TTI than those living in the capital of Colombia. Age, health insurance, region of residence, and stage at diagnosis were associated with TTI longer than 45 days in the multinomial model. We concluded that demographic variables (age, region of residence, and health insurance) which are proxies of social disparities and poor access to quality health care services, were associated with delays in TTI.