A new approach to regression analysis of linear transformation model with interval-censored data

Abstract

Interval-censored failure time data often occur in medical follow-up studies among other areas. Regression analysis of linear transformation models with interval-censored data has been investigated by several authors under different contexts, but most of the existing methods assume that the covariates are discrete because these methods rely on the estimation of conditional survival distribution function. Without this assumption, this paper constructs a new generalized estimating equation using the propensity score. The proposed inference procedure does not need to estimate the conditional survival distribution any more and then can be used not only in the discrete but also in the continuous covariate situation. The asymptotic properties of the resulting estimates are given, and an extensive simulation study is performed. Finally, the application to two real datasets is also provided. Key words: Estimating equation; Interval-censored data; Propensity score; Linear transformation model.