Changes in chronic medication adherence in older adults with cancer versus matched cancer-free cohorts.

OBJECTIVES: A cancer diagnosis can influence medication adherence for chronic conditions by shifting care priorities or reinforcing disease prevention. This study describes changes in adherence to medications for treating three common chronic conditions - diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension - among older adults newly diagnosed with non-metastatic breast, colorectal, lung, or prostate cancer. METHODS: We identified Medicare beneficiaries aged ≥66 years newly diagnosed with cancer and using medication for at least one chronic condition, and similar cohorts of matched individuals without cancer. To assess medication adherence, proportion of days covered (PDC) was measured in six-month windows starting six-months before through 24 months following cancer diagnosis or matched index date. Generalized estimating equations were used to estimate difference-in-differences (DID) comparing changes in PDCs across cohorts using the pre-diagnosis window as the referent. Analyses were run separately for each cancer type-chronic condition combination. RESULTS: Across cancer types and non-cancer cohorts, adherence was highest for anti-hypertensives (90-92%) and lowest for statins (77-79%). In older adults with colorectal and lung cancer, adherence to anti-diabetics and statins declined post-diagnosis compared with the matched non-cancer cohorts, with estimates ranging from a DID of -2 to -4%. In older adults with breast and prostate cancer cohorts, changes in adherence for all medications were similar to non-cancer cohorts. CONCLUSION: Our findings highlight variation in medication adherence by cancer type and chronic condition. As many older adults with early stage cancer eventually die from non-cancer causes, it is imperative that cancer survivorship interventions emphasize medication adherence for other chronic conditions.

Changes in chronic medication adherence, costs, and health care use after a cancer diagnosis among low-income patients and the role of patient-centered medical homes.

BACKGROUND: Approximately 40% of patients with cancer also have another chronic medical condition. Patient-centered medical homes (PCMHs) have improved outcomes among patients with multiple chronic comorbidities. The authors first evaluated the impact of a cancer diagnosis on chronic medication adherence among patients with Medicaid coverage and, second, whether PCMHs influenced outcomes among patients with cancer. METHODS: Using linked 2004 to 2010 North Carolina cancer registry and claims data, the authors included Medicaid enrollees who were diagnosed with breast, colorectal, or lung cancer who had hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and/or diabetes mellitus. Using difference-in-difference methods, the authors examined adherence to chronic disease medications as measured by the change in the percentage of days covered over time among patients with and without cancer. The authors then further evaluated whether PCMH enrollment modified the observed differences between those patients with and without cancer using a differences-in-differences-in-differences approach. The authors examined changes in health care expenditures and use as secondary outcomes. RESULTS: Patients newly diagnosed with cancer who had hyperlipidemia experienced a 7-percentage point to 11-percentage point decrease in the percentage of days covered compared with patients without cancer. Patients with cancer also experienced significant increases in medical expenditures and hospitalizations compared with noncancer controls. Changes in medication adherence over time between patients with and without cancer were not determined to be statistically significantly different by PCMH status. Some PCMH patients with cancer experienced smaller increases in expenditures (diabetes) and emergency department use (hyperlipidemia) but larger increases in their inpatient hospitalization rates (hypertension) compared with non-PCMH patients with cancer relative to patients without cancer. CONCLUSIONS: PCMHs were not found to be associated with improvements in chronic disease medication adherence, but were associated with lower costs and emergency department visits among some low-income patients with cancer.

CSF Bcl-2 and cytochrome C temporal profiles in outcome prediction for adults with severe TBI.

The biochemical cascades associated with cell death after traumatic brain injury (TBI) involve both pro-survival and pro-apoptotic proteins. We hypothesized that elevated cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) Bcl-2 and cytochrome C (CytoC) levels over time would reflect cellular injury response and predict long-term outcomes after TBI. Cerebrospinal fluid Bcl-2 and CytoC levels were measured for 6 days after injury for adults with severe TBI (N=76 subjects; N=277 samples). Group-based trajectory analysis was used to generate distinct temporal biomarker profiles that were compared with Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) and Disability Rating Scale (DRS) scores at 6 and 12 months after TBI. Subjects with persistently elevated temporal Bcl-2 and CytoC profiles compared with healthy controls had the worst outcomes at 6 and 12 months (P≤0.027). Those with CytoC profiles near controls had better long-term outcomes, and those with declining CytoC levels over time had intermediate outcomes. Subjects with Bcl-2 profiles that remained near controls had better outcomes than those with consistently elevated Bcl-2 profiles. However, subjects with Bcl-2 values that started near controls and steadily rose over time had 100% good outcomes by 12 months after TBI. These results show the prognostic value of Bcl-2 and CytoC profiles and suggest a dynamic apoptotic and pro-survival response to TBI.