bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Access to treatment among patients with advanced kidney cancer in Mexico.
Authors: Salazar-Mejía Carlos Eduardo , Piñeiro-Martínez Antonio , Juárez-Villarreal Angela Leticia , Jara-Rios Arianna Elizabeth , Ibarra-Alaniz Ana Patricia , Wimer-Castillo Blanca Otilia , Hernandez-Barajas David , Vidal-Gutiérrez Oscar , Gómez-Guerra Lauro , Zayas-Villanueva Omar Alejandro 
Published: September 2022

130 Background: The socioeconomic status of patients diagnosed with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) in developing countries could in many cases limit their access to the best available therapeutic options. We aimed to describe the clinical characteristics and access to treatment of Mexican patients with mRCC. Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of all patients with a histopathologically confirmed diagnosis of renal cell carcinoma who were treated at an oncology referral center in Northeast Mexico over a 5-year period. Results: We included 233 patients in the analysis, of whom 63% were men. The mean age at diagnosis was 58.2 years; 87% of the tumors were histopathologically classified as clear cell carcinoma. Regarding laterality, 54% of the tumors originated from the right kidney. The distribution of cases by clinical stage (CS) was as follows: CS I 15%, CS II 8%, CS III 17%, CS IV 60%. All of the included patients had government health insurance coverage; however, specific treatment for renal cell cancer was not included in this coverage. In terms of access to first-line systemic management in the 139 patients with advanced kidney cancer who were candidates for treatment, 29% received treatment with a single-drug tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), 4% were treated with combined or single-drug immunotherapy (IO), and 12% were treated with TKI combined with IO. All but one patient who was treated with a single drug or a combination of IO received these drugs in the context of a clinical trial. Fifty-five percent of patients with advanced disease did not have access to standard first-line therapy. The rate of loss to medical follow-up was 69% of cases. Conclusions: Despite the proven oncological benefit of the latest generation of therapies based on IO/IO or IO/TKI for mRCC, access to first-line standard management is still poor in our country, even with single agent TKI. Public health programs should be implemented to expand therapeutic options for this group of patients.
Evaluation of facilitators and barriers of timely breast cancer care in North Carolina (NC): A qualitative study.
Authors: Gaddy Jacquelyne Janean , Teal Randall , Bell Emily Fox , Wheeler Stephanie B. , Reeder-Hayes Katherine Elizabeth 
Published: September 2022

134 Background: Early detection and timely treatment of breast cancer using multi-disciplinary therapies often contributes to a goal of curative intent along with improved overall outcomes. In prior studies, Black women compared to non-Black women are at a higher chance of treatment delay (> 60 days) in NC. The care team factors that contribute to these treatment delays are unclear. Methods: This qualitative study utilized content analysis. The 30 participants included community stakeholders involved in breast cancer care delivery, including breast cancer clinicians and community resource providers. Participants were selected through purposive sampling. Three Area Health Education Centers (AHEC) regions (Northwest, Charlotte, and Area L) that represent the diversity of the state of NC were selected as sites for data collection. Each participant completed a one-time semi-structured interview which was audio-recorded and transcribed. Inductively derived codes were created from the previously established interview guide leading to the production of the codebook with each code conceptually defined. Transcripts were coded by 7 coders through the method of consensus coding leading to the identification of emergent themes. Code reports were generated from each code leading to the production of a narrative summary. Results: All participants identified perceived both facilitators and barriers to the timely initiation of breast cancer treatment. Barriers fell into several categories: geographical, financial, healthcare system related, and patient related (non-financial). Most barriers were perceived as more common among Black patients. Additionally, participants emphasized incidents of historical racism in medical care that limited Black patients from having trust in the healthcare system. Facilitators identified included: outreach through community partners, healthcare navigation, supportive healthcare providers, provision of social support services, transportation, integrative services, and raising the overall quality of cancer care. Conclusions: Despite the diversity of participants regarding region, years of employment, and role, stakeholders identified important common themes when reviewing the perceived facilitators and barriers of breast cancer care delivery. Perceived barriers were largely related to patients’ social determinants of health, and participants perceived that Black patients had more adverse social determinants impacting their care timeliness, highlighting that structural racism contributes to delayed cancer care delivery. Future initiatives aimed at improving the delivery of timely breast cancer care must focus on evaluating marginalized communities’ overall access to adequate care along with effective community engagement to build a higher level of trust from such patients and target the social determinants of health.
Falling off the treatment wagon: Barriers to cancer treatment and care for people experiencing health and social inequities.
Authors: Bourgeois Amber , Mollison Ashley , Horrill Tara C , Lambert Leah , Stajduhar Kelli 
Published: September 2022

135 Background: A key pillar of Canada’s healthcare system is universal access, yet significant barriers to cancer services remain for those impacted by health and social inequities (e.g., poverty, homelessness, racism). For this reason, cancer is diagnosed at a later stage, resulting in worse patient outcomes, a reduced quality of life, and at a higher cost to the healthcare system. Those who face significant barriers to access are under-represented in cancer control services Consequently, these inequities result in people dying from cancers that are highly treatable and preventable, however; little is known about their treatment and care course. The aim of this study was to explore barriers to accessing cancer treatment among people experiencing health and social inequities within a Canadian context. Methods: We conducted a secondary analysis of ethnographic data informed by critical theoretical perspectives of equity and social justice. The original research draws from 30 months of repeated interviews (n = 147) and 300 hours of observational fieldwork with people experiencing health and social inequities at the end-of-life, their support persons, and service providers. Results: Our analysis identified four themes presenting as ‘modifiable’ barriers to inequitable access to cancer treatment: (1) housing as a key determinant for cancer treatment (2) health literacy and ‘missing the window’ for shared decision making (3) invisibility of the social/structural determinants of health (4) navigating a complex and fractured system. These inter-related themes point to how people impacted by health and social inequities are at times ‘dropped’ out of the cancer system and therefore unable to access cancer treatment. Conclusions: Findings make visible the contextual and structural factors contributing to inequitable access to cancer treatment within a publicly funded health care system. Identifying people with social and health inequities and approaches to delivering cancer services are explicitly equity-oriented are urgently needed.
Association of prevalent social risks with treatment initiation among patients with cancer.
Authors: Velazquez Manana Ana I. , Dickerson John F. , Banegas Matthew P. 
Published: September 2022

137 Background: Social risks are adverse conditions that may serve as barriers to health care and lead to poor health outcomes. Among individuals with cancer, social risks like financial hardship have been associated with delayed treatment and increased mortality. However, little is known about the association of multiple prevalent social risks with cancer treatment initiation. In this study, we assessed the prevalence of social risks at time of cancer diagnosis and their association with treatment initiation. Methods: Data from patients aged ≥18, enrolled at Kaiser Permanente Northwest, diagnosed with cancer between June 1, 2017-December 31, 2019 and screened for social risks within 90 days pre-cancer diagnosis (baseline) were included. Baseline social risks included financial hardship, food insecurity, housing instability, and transportation difficulties. Cox proportional hazards regression models were used to assess the outcome of time to treatment initiation. Patients were censored at disenrollment or end of the study observation (February 29, 2020). Separate models were used to measure associations of any baseline social risks and time-to-treatment, each individual social risk, and a combined model with all 4 social risk variables. Confounding was controlled propensity score overlap weighting, estimated as a function of age at diagnosis, sex, race/ethnicity, Elixhauser comorbidity index, education, household income, NDI, cancer type, stage, and days from social risk assessment to cancer diagnosis. Results: Among the 549 patients, 49% were female and the mean age was 66 years (SD = 14). 105 (19%) patients reported any baseline social risk. The most common prevalent social risk was financial hardship (12.8%), followed by housing instability (9.1%), food insecurity (6.4%), and transportation difficulties (5.7%). In separate adjusted models, presence of any baseline social risk was associated with lower risk of treatment initiation (HR = 0.69, p = 0.040) and financial hardship was associated with lower risk of treatment initiation (HR = 0.63, p = 0.032). Conclusions: This study provides evidence that social risks at the time of cancer diagnosis are associated with lower risk of treatment initiation. Among individual social risks, financial hardship was a major barrier to initiation of cancer treatment. Our findings highlight the importance of screening for and addressing social risks at time of cancer diagnosis to reduce the risk of poor cancer care and subsequent health outcomes.
The impact of geography on receipt of cancer treatment in Montana.
Authors: Hensold Jack Oliver , Zimmerman Heather , Merrill Janette K. , Nagarajan Sumitha , Ng Diane , Grubbs Stephen S. 
Published: September 2022

140 Background: The challenges of cancer patients in rural areas are well-documented. Most rural hospitals do not deliver on-site cancer care services and lack infrastructure, specialty physicians and oncology-trained support personnel (i.e., nurses, advanced practice providers, and pharmacists) to deliver infusion services. Because of this, cancer patients travel long distances to receive treatment. Travel distance is associated with an increased financial burden and worse outcomes with cancer, including later stage at diagnosis, less timely receipt of chemotherapy, and delay or declination of treatment. According to America’s Health Rankings, high geographic disparity within the state of Montana remains a significant challenge to overall health. Chronic understaffing of oncologists further exacerbates the geographic barrier to cancer care. Methods: To assess the impact of these combined access barriers to cancer treatment, we utilized 5 year cumulative data (2014-2018) from the Montana tumor registry database to assess the impact of geographic disparity on cancer care for patients in Montana. Results: Overall 19.2% of Montanans did not receive treatment following a cancer diagnosis. This is similar to the percentage of cancer patients in Delaware that did not receive treatment (19.1%). Although the population of Delaware is similar to Montana, it is 1.3% of the size. While this suggests that distance may not impact the receipt of treatment for cancer, further analysis of treatment data for Montana by county demonstrated broad discrepancies in the receipt of treatment: No treatment ranged from 12.5% to 30.3%. When mapped geographically the counties with the highest percentage of “no treatment” were distant from the 8 Commission on Cancer-approved cancer centers within the state. A similar county-by-county analysis demonstrated no apparent relationship of “no treatment” with either socioeconomic deprivation or lack of insurance. Distance from Commission on Cancer-approved centers also correlated with traveling out of state to receive care. Conclusions: This analysis provides insight into the impact of geographic barriers on cancer treatment in Montana and identifies remote sites that could benefit from robust outreach and care services to improve cancer care delivery.
Addressing social determinants of health for colorectal cancer in the African American population: STAT (Screen, Trust, Access, Treat) phase I study.
Authors: Coe Emily , Induni Marta , Royal Diane , Shurney Dexter 
Published: September 2022

143 Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer and third leading cause of cancer deaths among African Americans, who have the highest CRC rates compared to other racial/ethnic groups, in the United States. STAT (Screen, Trust, Access, Treat) is a three-phase study assessing attitudes and perceptions related to disparities in CRC screening, treatment and clinical trial participation in the African American population. STAT Phase I surveyed attitudes/perceptions among health care providers (HCPs) and Phase II is ongoing to survey African American patients with CRC; in Phase III, data collected from Phases I/II will be used to design and test multiple interventions to reduce CRC disparities among African Americans. Here we present findings from STAT Phase I. Methods: Using non-probability and convenience sampling methodology, a survey link was exposed to over 3,000 HCPs through partnering non-profit health care organizations. The 20-item survey evaluated practitioner views on strategies for overcoming social determinants of health (SDOH), improving CRC outcomes among African Americans, and barriers/motivators for clinical trial enrolment. Results: Respondents (n = 109) comprised oncologists (53%), primary care providers (29%), gastroenterologists (2%), and representatives from other specialties (16%). They were predominantly White/Caucasian (65%); 22% were Asian/Asian American, 11% were African American/Black, and 6% were Hispanic/Latino. To overcome SDOH disparities, most HCPs used translation/interpreter services (83%), offered patients information in multiple languages (76%), and asked them to repeat back care instructions (73%); however, fewer offered provisions such as SDOH assessments (50%), access to financial assistance (66%), and transportation services (45%). Most HCPs agreed or strongly agreed they were prepared to care for patients from cultures differing from their own (91%), with health beliefs conflicting with Western medicine (71%), and with limited health literacy (83%). Increased community-based education (85%), community access to stool-based cancer screening tests (71%), and improved access to primary care physicians (69%) were viewed by HCPs as the favoured approaches to improve CRC outcomes among African Americans. Lack of awareness (43%) was reported as the predominant barrier to clinical trial enrolment, and HCPs agreed or strongly agreed that a patient eligibility screening system (86%) or clinical trial alert system (73%) would be a motivator to engage in clinical trials. Conclusions: Results from STAT Phase I reveal opportunities for HCPs to overcome inequities due to SDOH. Together with ongoing/planned research in STAT Phases II and III, these findings could inform strategies to reduce existing disparities in CRC care and improve outcomes for the African American population.
Racial/ethnic disparities in surgery access and outcome among non-metastatic HCC with an emphasis on Asian Americans.
Authors: Wang Qian , Corbett Virginia , Zhang Yaning , Jiang Changchuan , Boffetta Paolo , Schwartz Myron E. , Sung Max W. 
Published: September 2022

145 Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has the highest incidence and mortality in Asia. Though the incidence in the US has been decreasing, Asian Americans (AA) continues to face a significant burden from HCC. We aim to examine disparities in patients with non-metastatic HCC in receiving surgery and outcome, with an emphasis on AA ethnic subgroups. Methods: Patients diagnosed with localized or regional HCC were extracted from SEER 17 (1989-2019). Race was categorized into non-Hispanic White (NHW), non-Hispanic Black (NHB), Hispanic, Alaska Indian/American Native (AI/AN) and 12 AA subgroups. Multivariate logistic regression and Cox regression models were used to calculate the odds of receiving surgery and overall mortality, respectively. Results: Among the total of 71,552 patients with non-metastatic HCC (Table), after accounting for multiple comparison, Chinese and Japanese were significantly more likely to receive surgery while NHB, Hispanics, AI/AN, and Laotians were less likely to receive surgery compared to NHWs. Among those who received surgery, Chinese, Korean and other APIs had improved survival while NHB and Samoan had significantly increased overall mortality than NHWs. Conclusions: Although prior studies have combined AAs into a single group, considerable heterogeneity exists amongst AA ethnic subgroups. Further studies are needed to evaluate if socioeconomic status, cultural background, health behaviors, tumor biology, and health care access may underline these disparities and to help identify potential inventions to improve outcomes in this growing but heterogenous population.[Table: see text]
Clinical and nonclinical factors associated with a complete family history in a statewide quality improvement consortium.
Authors: Weiner Shayna , Liu Manlan , Rizzo Elizabeth , Griggs Jennifer J. 
Published: September 2022

149 Background: A complete family history is critical in identifying cancer patients who should be referred to genetic counseling and testing. Despite the importance of a detailed family history, defined as any cancer diagnoses in first- or second-degree relatives and their age at diagnosis, only about one third of cancer patients have a complete family history documented in their medical record. The Michigan Oncology Quality Consortium (MOQC), a physician-led consortium of oncology practices across the state of Michigan, selected documentation of a complete family history in oncology patients as a quality measure. The purpose of this study was to identify clinical and non-clinical factors associated with the quality of the family history. Methods: Beginning in 2020, MOQC began collecting completeness of documentation of cancer family history from the medical oncology records of patients with invasive cancer from MOQC practices twice per year in the Quality Oncology Practice Initiative (QOPI) database. QOPI data from 2020 and 2021 were combined for analyses. A multivariate model was built to determine the clinical and non-clinical factors, including age, sex, race, ethnicity, and cancer diagnosis, associated with documentation of a complete family history. Results: Between January 2020 and December 2021, 10,800 patients’ records were abstracted. Of these, 30% had a complete family history documented in their medical record. Factors independently and significantly associated with not having a complete family history included increasing age and Black race. Patients with breast cancer (AOR 1.94, 95% CI 1.72, 2.19) and colorectal cancer (AOR 1.2, 95% CI 1.05, 1.37) were more likely to have a complete family history than all others. Patients with prostate, pancreas, or endometrial cancer—all of which are associated with cancer syndromes—were no more likely than other patients to have a complete family history. Sex and ethnicity were not significantly associated with documentation of a complete family history. Conclusions: Patients may qualify for genetic testing based on family history alone. It is therefore crucial that clinicians know a patient’s complete family history to identify those patients eligible for genetic risk assessment. We have identified gaps in the quality of the family history with increasing age, in Black patients, and, except for breast and colorectal cancer, in patients with cancers associated with an inherited susceptibility. Our findings highlight an opportunity to improve care.[Table: see text]
Survival of the Hmong population diagnosed with colorectal cancer in the United States.
Authors: Walker Margaret , LoConte Noelle K. , Lor Kajua B. , Hampton John M. , Schiefelbein Andrea M , Lor Kha , Bui Molinna , Vidri Roberto J. 
Published: September 2022

152 Background: The Hmong people constitute an Asian-American subgroup, accounting for 0.1% of the United States (US) population. Originating from Laos and Vietnam, Hmong individuals fought as secret soldiers for the US during the Vietnam War and later immigrated to the US, with the largest settlements in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and California. The Hmong population has faced various health disparities in the domains of mental health, chronic disease, and cancer. This study seeks to investigate trends in colorectal cancer (CRC) survival in the US Hmong population. Methods: Cases of colon and rectal adenocarcinoma diagnosed between 2004-2017 were identified within the National Cancer Database. Summary statistics of demographic, clinical, socioeconomic, and treatment variables were calculated. Multiple Cox proportional hazard models were constructed using sets of demographic, clinical, socioeconomic, and treatment variables to identify factors associated with overall survival (OS) within the Hmong population diagnosed with CRC. Results: One hundred and twenty (0.01%) Hmong individuals were identified within a total of 881,243 CRC cases. Their average age at diagnosis was 58.9 years, compared 68.7 years for Non-Hispanic White (NHW) individuals (p < 0.01). Over half of Hmong individuals (52.5%) were diagnosed with Stage III or VI disease (NHW, 42.5%, p < 0.03), and they more frequently resided in the lowest median income quartile (p < 0.01), the lowest high school degree achievement quartile (p < 0.01), and had higher rates of Medicaid coverage (p < 0.01) compared to NHWs. When adjusting only for age, sex, stage, and Charlson-Deyo comorbidity score, Hmong individuals had a greater hazard of death compared to their NHW counterparts (HR 1.43, p < 0.01). However, in a multivariable model accounting for all variables suspected to be associated with CRC outcomes, OS was similar between these groups (HR 1.01, p < 0.93). Conclusions: Hmong individuals diagnosed with CRC appear to have similar overall survival to Non-Hispanic Whites despite belonging to lower socioeconomic groups, being diagnosed at a younger age and with a higher proportion of Stage III/VI disease. This may point to a robust response to treatment and resilience within the Hmong community. Future efforts will focus on disseminating this information and developing community-based approaches for health screening and prevention.