Yolanda D Tseng1, Nathan W Gouwens2, Simon S Lo3, Lia M Halasz3, Phil Spady3, Irina Mezheritsky4, Elizabeth Loggers5. 1. Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington. Electronic address: ydt2@uw.edu. 2. Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, Washington. 3. Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington. 4. Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Seattle, Washington. 5. Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, Seattle, Washington; Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington; Division of Oncology, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington.
Abstract
PURPOSE: We examined radiation therapy (RT) use within the last year of life (LYOL). As palliative RT (PRT) has been well studied in patients with ≥6-week life expectancies, we hypothesized that PRT use would be constant over the LYOL, except for the last 30 days, when use would decline given lack of prospective data supporting it. MATERIALS AND METHODS: At a single institution, 870 cancer patients died between October 2, 2014, and September 30, 2015, and had ≥3 evaluation and management visits within the LYOL. Claims and RT data were extracted and linked. Over the LYOL, we evaluated RT use by intent (curative vs palliative) and indications. RESULTS: Within the LYOL, one-third of patients underwent RT in the last 365 days of life to 444 sites, which decreased to 24.3% and 8.5% in the last 180 and 30 days of life, respectively. Patients who received any RT in the last 365 days of life were younger at death and had a higher proportion of lung, sarcoma, and transplant disease groups. One-quarter of sites were irradiated with curative intent, which remained constant over the LYOL. In contrast, PRT was used at a supralinear rate, in which treatment of bone metastases and use of single-fraction PRT increased closer to death. CONCLUSIONS: PRT appears to be disproportionately used closer to death, with an increasing proportion of irradiated sites being bone metastases. This may be secondary to increased symptoms from advanced cancer toward the end of life. As patients with very poor prognoses (eg, within 30 days of death) are generally not included in RT clinical trials, further studies are warranted to assess whether PRT for bone metastases at the end of life is efficacious.
PURPOSE: We examined radiation therapy (RT) use within the last year of life (LYOL). As palliative RT (PRT) has been well studied in patients with ≥6-week life expectancies, we hypothesized that PRT use would be constant over the LYOL, except for the last 30 days, when use would decline given lack of prospective data supporting it. MATERIALS AND METHODS: At a single institution, 870 cancerpatients died between October 2, 2014, and September 30, 2015, and had ≥3 evaluation and management visits within the LYOL. Claims and RT data were extracted and linked. Over the LYOL, we evaluated RT use by intent (curative vs palliative) and indications. RESULTS: Within the LYOL, one-third of patients underwent RT in the last 365 days of life to 444 sites, which decreased to 24.3% and 8.5% in the last 180 and 30 days of life, respectively. Patients who received any RT in the last 365 days of life were younger at death and had a higher proportion of lung, sarcoma, and transplant disease groups. One-quarter of sites were irradiated with curative intent, which remained constant over the LYOL. In contrast, PRT was used at a supralinear rate, in which treatment of bone metastases and use of single-fraction PRT increased closer to death. CONCLUSIONS: PRT appears to be disproportionately used closer to death, with an increasing proportion of irradiated sites being bone metastases. This may be secondary to increased symptoms from advanced cancer toward the end of life. As patients with very poor prognoses (eg, within 30 days of death) are generally not included in RT clinical trials, further studies are warranted to assess whether PRT for bone metastases at the end of life is efficacious.
Authors: Jennifer K Logan; Jing Jiang; Ya-Chen Tina Shih; Xiudong Lei; Ying Xu; Karen E Hoffman; Sharon H Giordano; Benjamin D Smith Journal: J Oncol Pract Date: 2019-03-08 Impact factor: 3.840
Authors: Annemarie C Eggen; Geke A P Hospers; Ingeborg Bosma; Miranda C A Kramer; Anna K L Reyners; Mathilde Jalving Journal: BMC Cancer Date: 2022-03-05 Impact factor: 4.430