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Effect of Surgery Type on Time to Adjuvant Chemotherapy and Impact of Delay on Breast Cancer Survival: A National Cancer Database Analysis

Annals of Surgical Oncology volume 26, pages 3240–3249 (2019)Cite this article

Abstract

Background

Timeliness of care is emerging as a quality indicator for breast cancer care. We sought to evaluate the impact of surgical treatment type on time to adjuvant chemotherapy and impact of treatment delay on survival.

Methods

Patients with stage I–III breast cancer treated with both surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy from 2010 to 2014 were identified from the National Cancer Database (NCDB). Delay in treatment was defined as > 120 days from diagnosis to chemotherapy. Multivariable analysis was performed to assess factors associated with delay in treatment and the effect of treatment delay on overall survival.

Results

Of 172,043 patients identified, 89.5% initiated chemotherapy within 120 days of diagnosis. Median time from diagnosis to surgery was shorter in patients undergoing breast conservation (25 days) than mastectomy (29 days, p < 0.001) and within mastectomy patients was shorter for mastectomy without reconstruction (26 versus 35 days, p < 0.001). Time from diagnosis to surgery showed larger differences between surgical groups than time from surgery to chemotherapy. On multivariable analysis of mastectomy patients, reconstruction remained significantly associated with delay to chemotherapy [odds ratio (OR) 1.7, p < 0.001]. For all patients regardless of type of surgery, after adjusting for patient, clinical, and treatment factors, delay of > 120 days from diagnosis to chemotherapy was associated with worse overall survival [hazard ratio (HR) 1.29, p < 0.001].

Conclusions

Initiation of chemotherapy greater than 120 days after diagnosis was associated with poorer overall survival. Time interval from diagnosis to surgery had the greatest impact on time from diagnosis to chemotherapy, with reconstruction resulting in the greatest delay.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, USA

    Amanda R. Kupstas M.D. & Judy C. Boughey M.D.

  2. Department of Health Sciences Research, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, USA

    Tanya L. Hoskin M.S., Courtney N. Day B.S. & Elizabeth B. Habermann Ph.D.

  3. Robert D. and Patricia E. Kern Center for the Science of Health Care Delivery, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, USA

    Elizabeth B. Habermann Ph.D.

Authors
  1. Amanda R. Kupstas M.D.
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  2. Tanya L. Hoskin M.S.
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  3. Courtney N. Day B.S.
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  4. Elizabeth B. Habermann Ph.D.
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  5. Judy C. Boughey M.D.
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Correspondence to Judy C. Boughey M.D..

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Disclosures

The Mayo Clinic Robert D. and Patricia E. Kern Center for the Science of Health Care Delivery provides salary support for Dr. Habermann, Ms. Hoskin, and Ms. Day. No external funding was used. The National Cancer Data Base (NCDB) is a joint project of the Commission on Cancer (CoC) of the American College of Surgeons and the American Cancer Society. The CoC’s NCDB and the hospitals participating in the CoC NCDB are the source of the deidentified data used herein; they have not verified and are not responsible for the statistical validity of the data analysis or the conclusions derived by the authors.

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Kupstas, A.R., Hoskin, T.L., Day, C.N. et al. Effect of Surgery Type on Time to Adjuvant Chemotherapy and Impact of Delay on Breast Cancer Survival: A National Cancer Database Analysis. Ann Surg Oncol 26, 3240–3249 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1245/s10434-019-07566-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1245/s10434-019-07566-7