Jimenez PB, Popp R, Sharan S, Manaise HK, Ahmed SH, Bansal S, Kowkabany G, Raikot S, DO KBS, George A, Gabriel E. Sociodemographic Barriers to the Timely Treatment of Pancreatic Cancer.
Anticancer Res 2023;
43:4969-4974. [PMID:
37909977 DOI:
10.21873/anticanres.16695]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 09/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND/AIM
Pancreatic cancer has a high mortality rate and timely treatment is imperative for favorable patient outcomes. This retrospective study aimed to identify disparities in time to treatment for pancreatic cancer based on sociodemographic factors.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
The study used the National Cancer Database from 2004 to 2019. A total of 423,482 patients with pancreatic cancer were included in the study. Time to first treatment, surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy were analyzed in the context of age, sex, race, Hispanic origin, insurance status, income, facility type, geographic setting, grade, stage, and Charlson-Deyo Comorbidity score (CDC).
RESULTS
All sociodemographic factors included were found to be significantly associated with disparities for time to treatment in at least one of the categories studied. Minorities, treatment at academic facilities, and patients with a high CDC score had consistently longer times to all treatment classifications.
CONCLUSION
The analyzed sociodemographic factors affected time to pancreatic cancer treatment. Disparities in time to treatment for pancreatic cancer must be studied and understood to ameliorate the impact this cancer has on society and assure the best possible care for all communities.
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