Racial disparities in oropharyngeal cancer survival

Publication date: February 2017
Source:Oral Oncology, Volume 65
Author(s): Uchechukwu C. Megwalu, Yifei Ma
BackgroundOropharyngeal cancer is an important cause of mortality and morbidity. Several studies have revealed racial disparities in head and neck cancer outcomes. The goal of our study was to evaluate the impact of race on survival in patients with oropharyngeal cancer, using a large population-based cancer database.Materials and methodsThis was a retrospective cohort study. Data were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) 18 Database of the National Cancer Institute. The study cohort included patients diagnosed with oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma between 2004 and 2012. The outcomes of interest were overall survival (OS) and disease-specific survival (DSS).ResultsAfter adjusting for age, sex, marital status, tumor site, and year of diagnosis, black race was associated with worse OS (HR 1.67, p<0.0001) and DSS (HR 1.67, p<0.0001).ConclusionBlack race is associated with worse survival in patients with oropharyngeal cancer. Further research is needed to elucidate the mechanism by which race impacts survival in oropharyngeal cancer. This may reveal potential areas of opportunity for public health interventions aimed at addressing disparities in cancer outcomes.



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