Access of patients with breast and lung cancer to chemotherapy treatment in public and private hospitals in the city of Buenos Aires.

OBJECTIVES: Describe the time elapsed from the diagnosis to treatment with chemotherapy for patients with breast and lung cancer at public and private hospitals in Buenos Aires. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. SETTING: Three public and three private academic hospitals in Buenos Aires. PARTICIPANTS: Patients with breast (n = 168) or lung cancer (n = 100) diagnosis treated with chemotherapy. MAIN OUTCOMES MEASURES: Clinical and sociodemographic data were collected in a stratified sample. We used the Kaplan-Meier estimator to analyse the time elapsed and the log rank test to compare both groups. RESULTS: For breast cancer patients, median time elapsed between diagnosis and treatment with chemotherapy was 76 days (95% CI: 64-86) in public and 60 days (95% CI: 52-65) in private hospitals (P = 0.0001). For adjuvant and neoadjuvant treatments, median time was 130 (95% CI: 109-159) versus 64 (95% CI: 56-73) days (P < 0.0001) and 57 days (95% CI: 49-75) versus 26 (95% CI: 16-41) days, respectively (P = 0.0002). There were no significant differences in the time from first consultation to diagnosis. In patients with lung cancer, median time from diagnosis to treatment was 71 days (95% CI: 60-83) in public hospitals and 31 days (95% CI: 24-39) in private hospitals (P = 0.0002). In the metastatic setting, median time to treatment was 63 days (95% CI: 45-83) in public and 33 (95% CI: 26-44) days in private hospitals (P = 0.005). CONCLUSIONS: There are significant disparity in the access to treatment with chemotherapy for patients in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Central nervous system relapse in diffuse large B lymphoma: a retrospective cohort study / [Recaída en sistema nervioso central en linfoma difuso de células B grandes: estudio de cohorte retrospectiva]

Introduction: CNS relapse in patients with LDCGB is a poor prognosis event. The incidence of relapse is variable according to the literature. Data in Latin America is lacking. Methods: In order to establish the incidence of CNS relapse in our cohort, time to CNS relapse and the impact of CNS relapse risk factors, a retrospective cohort study was performed, from January 2012 to June 2017. Results: One hundred and forty seven patients were analyzed. The median age was 66 years (ICR 56-76); 76 patients (51.70%) were men. The IPI was low or intermediate/low in 115 (78.2%) cases. The CNS IPI was intermediate in 77 (52.4%) and high in 14 (9.5%) of cases. Thirty-five (23.81%) patients received intrathecal prophylaxis. No patient received systemic prophylaxis. During the follow-up, 8 (4.59%) patients had CNS relapse, none of them with high IPI. The median time to relapse was 6.5 months (ICR 5.5-10). Seven (87.5%) patients relapsed within the year of diagnosis. We found no risk factors for CNS involvement in the bivariate analysis. The incidence of relapse was 2.7% (CI 0.2% -4.6%), 4.8% (CI 1.8% -8.9%) and 5.4% (CI 4.5- 8.9%) at 6, 12 and 24 months, respectively. Discussion: The incidence of CNS relapse was similar to that described in the international series. Our study confirms that the majority of patients relapse during the first year of follow up. We must carry out broader collaborative work to better establish the risk factor for CNS relapse.

Introducción: La recaída del SNC en pacientes con LDCBG en un evento de mal pronóstico. La incidencia de recaída  es variable según la bibliografía. Los datos en América Latina son escasos. Metodología: Para establecer la incidencia de recaída en SNC, el tiempo a la recaída en SNC y el impacto de los factores de riesgo de recaída del SNC, se realizó un estudio de cohorte retrospectiva, de enero del 2012 a junio del 2017. Resultados: Se analizaron 147 pacientes. La mediana de edad fue de 66 años (IIC 56-76); 76 pacientes (51,70%) fueron hombres. El IPI fue bajo o intermedio/bajo en 115 (78,2%) casos. El CNS IPI fue intermedio en 77 (52,4%) y alto en 14 (9,5%) casos. Treinta y cinco (23.81%) pacientes recibieron profilaxis intratecal del SNC, ninguno profilaxis sistémica. Durante el seguimiento, 8 (4,59%) pacientes tuvieron recaída del SNC. La mediana de tiempo a la recaída fue de 6,5 meses (IIC 5,5 - 10). Siete (87,5%) pacientes recayeron dentro del año. No encontramos factores de riesgo para el compromiso del SNC en el análisis bivariado. La incidencia de recaída fue del 2,7% (IC 0,2%-4,6%), 4,8% (IC 1,8%-8,9%) y 5,4% (IC 4,5-8,9%) a los 6, 12 y 24 meses, respectivamente. Discusión: La incidencia de recaída del SNC fue similar a la descrita en las series internacionales. Nuestro estudio confirma que la mayoría de los pacientes que recaen, lo hacen dentro del primer año del diagnóstico. Debemos realizar trabajos colaborativos más amplios para establecer mejor factores de riesgo asociados.