Is financial toxicity associated with delays in diagnosis in gynecologic cancers?

Authors

null

Maria Fatima Reyes

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA

Maria Fatima Reyes, Giuliana Rivera Casul, Nadiha Noor Chelsea, Annika Gompers, Michele R. Hacker, Katharine Esselen

Organizations

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA

Research Funding

No funding received
None.

Background: Patients with gynecologic cancer and high financial toxicity (FT) are significantly more likely to report delaying care than patients with low FT. We compared time of symptoms onset to diagnosis and treatment stratified by FT in patients with gynecologic cancer. Methods: Patients with gynecologic cancer completed a cross-sectional survey at follow-up visits with gynecology oncology providers from 2017-2021. The survey included the Comprehensive Score for Financial Toxicity (COST) tool. Data were abstracted from medical records, including dates of symptom onset, initial biopsy, surgery and/or start of relevant treatment. FT was categorized as high (COST score ≤23) and low (COST score >23). Data are presented as n (%) and median (interquartile range). Results: There were 258 respondents, 54% with uterine cancer, 30% with ovarian and 16% with cervical. High FT was reported by 31% and low FT by 69%. Median age at diagnosis was 62 (53.8-69.9) years, 81% of respondents were Non-Latinx White, and 7% had a non-English primary language. Most cancers were stage I (59%), 10% stage II, and 31% stages III-IV. Most patients had surgery (91%), 50% had chemotherapy and 45% had radiation; 15% had recurrence. Median time of COST score since diagnosis was 13.6 months (5.7-41.1). Risk factors for high FT included age, race and ethnicity, education, employment, insurance status, income, and chemotherapy (all p<0.05). Median time from symptom onset to diagnosis in all gynecologic cancers was longer in the high FT [3.1 (1.1-5.8) months] compared to the low FT [1.8 (0.9-3.8) months] group (p=0.01). Time from biopsy to gynecologic oncology consult and time from consult to surgery did not differ based on FT (both p> 0.05). Among patients with cervical cancer, those with high FT had a longer median time from symptom onset to diagnosis [5.0 months (3.1–8.8)] compared to those with low FT [1.7 months (0.9–3.7); (p=0.04)]. Similarly, patients with uterine cancer and high FT had longer median time from symptoms onset to diagnosis [3.0 months (1.0–6.4)] than those with low FT [1.8 months (0.9–3.8); p=0.03]. In patients with ovarian cancer, time from symptom onset to diagnosis was not significantly different based on financial toxicity (p>0.05). Conclusions: Patients with uterine and cervical cancer who reported high FT had a longer time to diagnosis compared to patients with low FT. Delays in accessing care, initial evaluation and treatment may contribute to worse cancer outcomes and survival for patients with FT as reported in other studies. More work is needed to understand what financial and social factors lead to the longer time to diagnosis in patients with uterine and cervical cancer.

Disclaimer

This material on this page is ©2024 American Society of Clinical Oncology, all rights reserved. Licensing available upon request. For more information, please contact licensing@asco.org

Abstract Details

Meeting

2023 ASCO Quality Care Symposium

Session Type

Poster Session

Session Title

Poster Session B

Track

Health Care Access, Equity, and Disparities,Technology and Innovation in Quality of Care,Palliative and Supportive Care

Sub Track

Access to Timely Detection and Referral

Citation

JCO Oncol Pract 19, 2023 (suppl 11; abstr 119)

DOI

10.1200/OP.2023.19.11_suppl.119

Abstract #

119

Poster Bd #

B26

Abstract Disclosures

Similar Abstracts

First Author: Larissa H Mattei

Abstract

2023 ASCO Annual Meeting

The impact of surgery on patients with VHL-associated tumors: An international patient survey.

First Author: Murali Sundaram

First Author: Sakhr Abdulsalam Alshwayyat