Impact of facility type and volume in locally advanced esophageal cancer.

BACKGROUND: We hypothesized that academic facilities and high-volume facilities would be independently associated with improved survival and a greater propensity for performing surgery in locally advanced esophageal cancer. METHODS: We identified patients diagnosed with stage IB-III esophageal cancer during 2004-2016 from the National Cancer Database. Facility type was categorized as academic or community, and facility volume was based on the number of times a facility's unique identification code appeared in the dataset. Each facility type was dichotomized into high- and low-volume subgroups using the cutoff of 20 esophageal cancers treated/year. We fitted multivariable regression models in order to assess differences in surgery selection and survival between facilities according to type and volume. RESULTS: Compared to patients treated at high-volume community hospitals, those at high-volume academic facilities were more likely to undergo surgery (odds ratio: 1.865, p < 0.001) and were associated with lower odds of death (odds ratio: 0.784, p = 0.004). For both academic and community hospitals, patients at high-volume facilities were more likely to undergo surgery compared to those at low-volume facilities, p < 0.05. For patients treated at academic facilities, high-volume facilities were associated with lower odds of death (odds ratio: 0.858, p = 0.02) compared to low-volume facilities, while there was no significant difference in the odds of death between high- and low-volume community hospitals (odds ratio: 1.018, p = 0.87). CONCLUSIONS: Both facility type and case volume impact surgery selection and survival in locally advanced esophageal cancer. Compared to community hospitals, academic facilities were more likely to perform surgery and were associated with improved survival.

Lobectomy Demonstrates Superior Survival Than Segmentectomy for High-Grade Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: The National Cancer Database Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Current recommendations for segmentectomy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) include size ≤2 cm, margins ≥ 2 cm, and no nodal involvement. This study further stratifies the selection criteria for segmentectomy using the National Cancer Database (NCDB). METHODS: The NCDB was queried for patients with high-grade (poorly/undifferentiated) T1a/b peripheral NSCLC (tumor size ≤2 cm), who underwent either lobectomy or segmentectomy. Patients with pathologic node-positive disease or who received neoadjuvant/adjuvant treatments were excluded. Propensity score analysis was used to adjust for differences in pretreatment characteristics. RESULTS: 11 091 patients were included with 10 413 patients (93.9%) treated with lobectomy and 678 patients (6.1%) underwent segmentectomy. In a propensity matched pair analysis of 1282 patients, lobectomy showed significantly improved median survival of 88.48 months vs 68.30 months for segmentectomy, P = .004. On multivariate Cox regression, lobectomy was associated with significantly improved survival (hazard ratio (HR): .81, 95% CI .72-.92, P = .001). Subgroup analysis of propensity score matched patients with a Charlson-Deyo comorbidity score (CDCC) of 0 also demonstrated a trend of improved survival with lobectomy. DISCUSSION: Lobectomy may confer significant survival advantage over segmentectomy for high-grade NSCLC (≤2 cm). More work is needed to further stratify various NSCLC histologies with their respective grades allowing more comprehensive selection criteria for segmentectomy.

Increasing Time-to-Treatment for Lung Cancer: Are We Going Backward?

BACKGROUND: Treatment delays in lung cancer care in the United States may be attributable to a diverse range of patient, provider, and institutional factors, the precise contributions of which remain unclear. The objective of our study was to use the National Cancer Database to investigate specific predictors of increased time-to-treatment initiation. METHODS: We identified 567 783 patients undergoing treatment for stage I to stage IV non-small cell lung cancer during 2010 to 2018. Time-to-treatment initiation was defined as the number of days from radiologic diagnosis to initiation of first treatment. We used mixed effect negative binomial regression to determine predictors of time-to-treatment initiation. RESULTS: We noted a steady rise in the overall mean time-to-treatment initiation interval from 33 days (2010) to 39 days (2018; P < .01). Black race, a later year at diagnosis, nonprivate insurance, and diagnosis and treatment at different facilities were independent predictors of increased time-to-treatment initiation, irrespective of disease stage. Compared with White race, Black race corresponded to a 15% to 20% increase in time-to-treatment initiation, depending on disease stage (P < .01). For stages I and II, radiation as first course of therapy corresponded with a 69% and 33% increase in time-to-treatment initiation, respectively, compared with surgery (P < .01). CONCLUSIONS: Lung cancer treatment initiation times have seen an upward trajectory in recent years. Black patients encountered significantly longer treatment initiation times, regardless of treatment modality or disease stage. Prolonged initiation times appear to contribute to existing health care disparities by disproportionately affecting medically underserved communities.

Treatment quality and outcomes vary with hospital burden of uninsured and Medicaid patients with cancer in early non-small cell lung cancer.

Objectives: Safety-net hospitals deliver a significant level of care to uninsured patients, Medicaid-enrolled patients, and other vulnerable patients. Little is known about the impact of safety-net hospital status on outcomes in non-small cell lung cancer. We aimed to compare treatment characteristics and outcomes between hospitals categorized according to their relative burden of uninsured or Medicaid-enrolled patients with non-small cell lung cancer. Methods: We queried the National Cancer Database for patients with clinical stage I and II non-small cell lung cancer presenting from 2004 to 2018. We categorized hospitals on the basis of their relative burden of uninsured or Medicaid-enrolled patients with non-small cell lung cancer into low-burden (<8.2%), medium-burden (8.2%-12.0%), high-burden (12.1%-16.8%), and highest burden (>16.8%) quartiles. We investigated the impact of care at these hospitals on outcomes while controlling for sociodemographic, clinical, and facility characteristics. Results: We identified 204,189 patients treated at 1286 facilities. There were 592 low-burden, 297 medium-burden, 219 high-burden, and 178 highest burden hospitals. Patients at highest burden hospitals were more likely to be younger, male, Black, and Hispanic (P < .01), and to reside in rural, low-income, and low-educated regions (P < .01). Patients at these facilities had a greater likelihood of not receiving surgery, undergoing an open procedure, undergoing a regional lymph node examination involving less than 10 lymph nodes, having a length of stay more than 4 days, and not receiving treatment (P < .05). Conclusions: Our results indicate reduced treatment quality and higher mortality in patients undergoing surgery for early non-small cell lung cancer at hospitals with an increased burden of uninsured or Medicaid-enrolled patients with non-small cell lung cancer. There is a need to raise the standard of care to improve outcomes in vulnerable populations.

Conversion to Thoracotomy in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: Risk Factors and Perioperative Outcomes.

Objective: We aimed to identify predictors of conversion to thoracotomy and test the hypothesis that conversion is associated with inferior perioperative outcomes in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Methods: We queried the National Cancer Database for patients with stage I to III NSCLC undergoing minimally invasive surgery (MIS) during 2010 to 2016. We compared clinicopathologic factors between patients undergoing MIS with and without conversion. We fitted multivariable regression models to identify independent predictors of conversion and compare perioperative outcomes between the 2 groups. Results: A rising trend in the use of MIS was accompanied by a declining trend in the rate of conversion to thoracotomy. A total of 11.3% of the 83,219 cases were converted. Conversion was associated with a higher Charlson-Deyo score, squamous histology, nodal involvement, high tumor grade, tumor size ≥5 cm, and a higher T stage (P < 0.05). Successful MIS without conversion was predicted by advanced age, sublobar resection, robotic approach, and treatment at an academic high-volume facility (P < 0.05). Conversion was linked to longer hospital stays, higher 30-day and 90-day mortality, and unplanned readmission (P < 0.05), irrespective of the type of MIS approach. Conclusions: Conversion rates for video-assisted and robot-assisted thoracoscopic surgery have seen a decline in recent years. Irrespective of the type of MIS approach, conversion was associated with inferior perioperative outcomes. The robotic approach and treatment at an academic high-volume facility were associated with a lower likelihood of conversion. Early recognition of the individual risk factors for conversion may help to counsel patients about the likelihood of, and detriments associated with, conversion and ultimately reduce conversion rates.

Social determinants and facility type impact adherence to best practices in operable IIIAN2 lung cancer.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to identify patient- and facility-specific predictors of collective adherence to 4 recommended best treatment practices in operable IIIAN2 non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and test the hypothesis that collective adherence is associated with superior survival. METHODS: We queried the National Cancer Database for clinical stage IIIAN2 NSCLC patients undergoing surgery during 2010-2015. The following best practices were examined: performance of an anatomic resection, performance of an R0 resection, examination of regional lymph nodes and administration of induction therapy. Multivariable regression models were fitted to identify independent predictors of guideline-concordance. RESULTS: We identified 7371 patients undergoing surgical resection for IIIAN2 lung cancer, of whom 90.8% underwent an anatomic resection, 88.2% received an R0 resection, 92.5% underwent a regional lymph node examination, 41.6% received induction therapy and 33.7% received all 4 best practices. Higher income, private insurance and treatment at an academic facility were independently associated with adherence to all 4 best practices (P < 0.01). A lower level of education and residence in a rural county were associated with a lack of adherence (P < 0.05). Adherence to all 4 practices correlated with improved survival (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: National adherence to best treatment practices in operable IIIAN2 lung cancer was variable as evidenced by the majority of patients not receiving recommended induction therapy. Socioeconomic factors and facility type are important determinants of guideline-concordance. Future efforts to improve outcomes should take this into account since guideline concordance, in the form of collective adherence to all 4 best practices, was associated with improved survival.

Travelling to a High-Volume Center Confers Improved Survival in Stage I Non-small Cell Lung Cancer.

BACKGROUND: The association of hospital volume with outcomes has been assessed previously for patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but there are limited data on the cumulative effect of travel burden and hospital volume on treatment decisions and survival outcomes. We used the National Cancer Database to evaluate this relationship in early-stage NSCLC. METHODS: Outcomes of interest were compared between 2 propensity-matched groups with stage I NSCLC: patients in the bottom quartile of distance travelled who underwent surgery at low-volume centers (Local) and those in the top quartile of distance travelled who received surgery at high-volume centers (Distant). Outcomes included type of resection (anatomic or nonanatomic), time to resection (< or ≥8 weeks), number of lymph nodes examined (< or ≥10 nodes) and R0 resection. RESULTS: We identified 3325 Local patients who travelled 2.3 miles (interquartile range [IQR]: 1.4-3.3 miles) to centers that treated 10.5 (IQR: 6.5-16.5) stage I NSCLCs/year and 3361 Distant patients who travelled 40.0 miles (IQR: 29.1-63.4 miles) to centers treating 56.9 (IQR: 40.1-84.7) stage I NSCLCs/year. Local patients were less likely to receive surgery <8 weeks post-diagnosis, have ≥10 lymph nodes examined during surgery, and undergo an R0 resection (all P < .01). Distant patients had shorter hospital stays and superior median survival, both P < .01. CONCLUSIONS: Patients travelling longer distances to high-volume centers receive better and more timely surgical care, leading to shorter hospital stays and improved survival outcomes. Regionalization of lung cancer care by improving travel support to larger treatment facilities may help improve early-stage NSCLC outcomes.

Invasive thymoma - Which patients benefit from post-operative radiotherapy?

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study is to identify patients with thymoma who should receive post-operative radiotherapy. METHODS: The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database was queried for stage IIB-IV thymoma patients diagnosed during 1988-2015. We analyzed the prognostic implications of various clinical-pathological factors by comparing the outcomes of those who received surgery with and without post-operative radiotherapy. RESULTS: A total of 1120 patients were identified; 62% received post-operative radiotherapy and 38% underwent surgery alone. In a propensity-matched cohort of 812 patients, no survival difference was seen in World Health Organization A, AB, B1, B2, or B3 tumors with the addition of post-operative radiotherapy to surgery (p>0.05). Post-operative radiotherapy also did not improve survival over surgery alone for tumors ≥ or < less than the 4 cm, 7 cm, 10 cm, and 13 cm cutoffs, all p>0.05. Post-operative radiotherapy was an independent, positive prognostic indicator only in the subgroup with stage III disease and in those receiving chemotherapy in addition to post-operative radiotherapy, both p<0.05. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with stage III thymoma are most likely to benefit from the addition of post-operative radiotherapy to surgical treatments. Tumor size or World Health Organization histology alone should not be criteria for determining the need for post-operative radiotherapy in locally advanced thymoma. Masaoka-Koga stage, which has traditionally been used to help make such decisions, appears to be the most reliable determinant of the use of post-operative radiotherapy.

Anatomic resection has superior long-term survival compared with wedge resection for second primary lung cancer after prior lobectomy.

OBJECTIVES: The extent of surgical resection for early-stage second primary lung cancer (SPLC) in patients with a previous lobectomy is unclear. We sought to compare anatomic lung resections (lobectomy and segmentectomy) and wedge resections for small peripheral SPLC using a population-based database. METHODS: The Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database was queried for all patients with ≤2 cm peripheral SPLC diagnosed between 2004 and 2015 who underwent prior lobectomy for the first primary and surgical resection only for the SPLC. American College of Chest Physicians guidelines were used to classify SPLC. Kaplan-Meier analysis and multivariable Cox regression were used to compare overall survival. RESULTS: A total of 356 patients met the inclusion criteria with 203 (57%) treated with wedge resection and 153 (43%) treated with anatomic resection. Significantly better median survival was observed with anatomic resection than with wedge resection using a Kaplan-Meier analysis (124 vs 63 months; P < 0.001). With multivariable Cox regression, improved long-term survival was observed for anatomic resection (hazard ratio: 0.44, confidence interval: 0.27-0.70; P = 0.001). Improvement in survival was demonstrated with wedge resection when lymph node sampling was done. Lastly, we calculated the average treatment effect on the treated with inverse probability weighting for a subgroup of patients and found that those with wedge resection and lymph node sampling had shorter long-term survival times. CONCLUSIONS: Anatomic resections may provide better long-term survival than wedge resections for patients with early-stage peripheral SPLC after prior lobectomy. Significant improvement in survival was observed with wedge resection for SPLC when adequate lymph node dissection was performed.

Lobectomy is superior to segmentectomy for peripheral high grade non-small cell lung cancer ≤2 cm.

BACKGROUND: Current practice guidelines recommend the following criteria for segmentectomy for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC): size ≤2 cm, margins ≥2 cm and no lymph node involvement. We sought to further stratify the selection criteria for segmentectomy for small peripheral high-grade tumors. METHODS: This retrospective database study was conducted using the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) database. We queried for patients with high-grade (poorly differentiated/undifferentiated) pathological (p)T1a/b peripheral NSCLC (tumor size ≤2 cm), who underwent either lobectomy or segmentectomy between 2004 and 2015. Patients with node-positive disease or those who received any form of induction or adjuvant treatments were excluded. RESULTS: A total of 4,332 patients met the inclusion criteria, with 3,977 patients (91.8%) treated with lobectomy and 355 patients (8.2%) who underwent segmentectomy. In a propensity matched pair analysis of 640 patients, lobectomy (n=320) showed significantly improved 5-year survival of 45.9% vs. 33.8% for segmentectomy (n=320), P<0.01. In a multivariate Cox regression analysis, lobectomy was associated with significantly improved survival (HR: 0.84, 95% CI: 0.714-0.989, P=0.036). Interestingly, married status, adenocarcinoma histology, number of lymph nodes sampled were associated with better survival (P<0.05), while advanced age and male gender had worse survival outcomes (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: For small peripheral NSCLC ≤2 cm and high grades of tumor differentiation, lobectomy is associated with better long-term survival outcomes as compared to segmentectomy. Additional data is needed to further stratify various NSCLC histologies with their respective grades to allow for better selection for segmentectomy.

The Etiology of Primary Hyperhidrosis: A Systematic Review.

PURPOSE: Primary hyperhidrosis is a pathological disorder of unknown etiology, affecting 0.6-5% of the population, and causing severe functional and social handicaps. As the etiology is unknown, it is not possible to treat the root cause. Recently some differences between affected and non-affected people have been reported. The aim of this review is to summarize these new etiological data. METHODS: Search of the literature was performed in the PubMed/Medline Database and pertinent articles were retrieved and reviewed. Additional publications were obtained from the references of these articles. RESULTS: Some anatomical and pathophysiological characteristics (as well as enzymatic, metabolic, and neurological dysfunctions) have been observed in hyperhidrotic subjects; three main possible etiological factors predominate. A familial trait seems to exist, and genetic loci associated with hyperhidrosis have been identified. Histological differences were observed in sympathetic ganglia of hyperhidrotic subjects: the ganglia were larger and contained a higher number of ganglion cells. A higher expression of acetylcholine and alpha-7 neuronal nicotinic receptor subunit in the sympathetic ganglia of patients with hyperhidrosis has been reported. CONCLUSIONS: Despite these accumulated data, the etiology of primary hyperhidrosis remains obscure. Nevertheless, three main lines for future research seem to be delineated: genetics, histological observations, and enzymatic studies.

Reconstruction of the Sympathetic Chain.

There is a small subset of patients who have undergone endoscopic thoracic sympathectomy for hyperhidrosis or facial blushing who are dissatisfied and would wish reversal. Compensatory sweating is the most common side effect that causes a person to regret surgery. Treatment options are limited and usually not effective in patients with severe side effects from sympathectomy. Nerve graft interposition has been proven to be effective in experimental models and small clinical series. Da Vinci robotic nerve graft reconstruction with interposition graft and direct suturing of nerve and high magnification dissection most closely mirrors standard nerve reconstruction principles when done as a minimally invasive procedure.

CT screening for lung cancer: value of expert review of initial baseline screenings.

OBJECTIVE. Appropriate radiologic interpretation of screening CT can minimize unnecessary workup and intervention. This is particularly challenging in the baseline round. We report on the quality assurance process we developed for the International Early Lung Cancer Action Program. MATERIALS AND METHODS. After initial training at the coordinating center, radiologists at 10 participating institutions and at the center independently interpreted the first 100 baseline screenings. The radiologist at the institutions had access to the center interpretations before issuing the final reports. After the first 100 screenings, the interpretations were jointly discussed. This report summarizes the results of the initial 100 dual interpretations at the 10 institutions. RESULTS. The final institution interpretations agreed with the center in 895 of the 1000 interpretations. Compared with the center, the frequency of positive results was higher at eight of the 10 institutions. The most frequent reason of discrepant interpretations was not following the protocol (n = 55) and the least frequent was not identifying a nodule (n = 3). CONCLUSION. The quality assurance process helped focus educational programs and provided an excellent vehicle for review of the protocol with participating physicians. It also suggests that the rate of positive results can be reduced by such measures.

Internal mammary silicone lymphadenopathy diagnosed by robotic thoracoscopic lymphadenectomy.

Internal mammary lymphadenopathy can be caused by a variety of disease processes and is a difficult diagnostic dilemma. We report a case of internal mammary lymphadenopathy, in a patient with a significant history of malignancy, requiring a tissue diagnosis. Robotic thoracoscopic lymphadenectomy was used to facilitate excisional biopsy. Pathology was significant for silicone granulomatous lymphadenitis secondary to silicone breast implants inserted after mastectomy for breast cancer.