Comorbidities at time of diagnosis as a predictor of more or less aggressive treatment modalities in early-invasive breast cancer.

Abstract

e12591 Background: Comorbidities and advanced age have been shown to play important roles in breast cancer treatment and outcomes. Reduced doses of chemotherapy, worse treatment-related side-effects, poor performance status in patients with significant comorbidities, and the biological interplay between other diseases and cancer may also play roles. We evaluated the relationship between age and pre-existing comorbidities and receipt of local and systemic therapy in a cohort of African American (AA) women with early invasive breast cancer. Methods: The study population included 1,169 AJCC stage I-III invasive breast cancer survivors from the Detroit Research on Cancer Survivors (ROCS) study, a large cohort of AA cancer survivors. Comorbidities (both individual diseases and a combined count that was categorized as low/medium/high comorbidity burden), age at diagnosis, and other demographic variables were obtained from self-reported standardized questionnaires. Cancer-related variables including treatment were obtained from the Metropolitan Detroit Cancer Surveillance System registry. Recommended treatment was subdivided into localized (surgery ± radiation; N = 1,156), hormonal (N = 848) and chemotherapy (N = 680). Logistic regression estimated the associations between age and pre-existing comorbid conditions and the receipt of recommended treatments. Adjusted models included variables that were selected a priori and were significant predictors in univariate analysis. Results: Most women received recommended localized treatment (82.6%), hormone treatment (73.7%), and chemotherapy (79.9%). There were no differences in receipt of localized treatment based on age or comorbidity burden in adjusted analyses. However, arthritis and depression were significantly associated with not receiving recommended localized treatment (Odds ratio (OR): 0.66, 95% CI: 0.47, 0.93 and OR: 0.53, 95% CI: 0.36, 0.78, respectively). Women with a history of obesity (BMI ≥30) were more likely to receive recommended hormone therapy (OR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.19, 2.26), while women with congestive heart failure were less likely (OR: 0.46, 95% CI: 0.23, 0.90). Receipt of recommended chemotherapy was less likely for those with increasing age (Ptrend< 0.01) and increasing comorbidity burden (Ptrend= 0.02). Those with a history of arthritis (OR: 0.66, 95% CI: 0.44, 0.99) and hypercholesterolemia (OR: 0.62, 95% CI: 0.41, 0.95) were also less likely to receive recommended chemotherapy. Conclusions: Advanced age and presence of pre-existing co-morbid medical conditions appears to influence the receipt of chemotherapy, while individual conditions were associated with receipt of local treatment or hormone therapy in a cohort of AA survivors, suggesting the importance of providing comprehensive medical care for all women with early invasive breast cancer.