Risk Factors for Return to the Emergency Department and Readmission in Patients With Hospital-Diagnosed Advanced Lung Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Advanced lung cancer (ALC) is a symptomatic disease often diagnosed in the context of hospitalization. The index hospitalization may be a window of opportunity to improve care delivery. OBJECTIVES: We examined the patterns of care and risk factors for subsequent acute care utilization among patients with hospital-diagnosed ALC. RESEARCH DESIGN, SUBJECTS, AND MEASURES: In Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Medicare, we identified patients with incident ALC (stage IIIB-IV small cell or non-small cell) from 2007 to 2013 and an index hospitalization within 7 days of diagnosis. We used a time-to-event model with multivariable regression to identify risk factors for 30-day acute care utilization (emergency department use or readmission). RESULTS: More than half of incident ALC patients were hospitalized around the time of diagnosis. Among 25,627 patients with hospital-diagnosed ALC who survived to discharge, only 37% ever received systemic cancer treatment. Within 6 months, 53% had been readmitted, 50% had enrolled in hospice, and 70% had died. The 30-day acute care utilization was 38%.Small cell histology, greater comorbidity, precancer acute care use, length of index stay >8 days, and prescription of a wheelchair were associated with higher risk of 30-day acute care utilization. Age >85 years, female sex, residence in South or West regions, palliative care consultation, and discharge to hospice or a facility were associated with lower risk. CONCLUSIONS: Many patients with hospital-diagnosed ALC experience an early return to the hospital and most die within 6 months. These patients may benefit from increased access to palliative and other supportive care during index hospitalization to prevent subsequent health care utilization.

Acute pancreatitis as an early marker of pancreatic cancer and cancer stage, treatment, and prognosis.

BACKGROUND: We aimed to examine the association between acute pancreatitis, a potential early symptom of pancreatic cancer, and pancreatic cancer stage, treatment, and prognosis. METHODS: We conducted a cohort study of patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer during 2004-2017 using population-based registry data from Denmark and Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) data linked with Medicare claims from the United States (US), which include individuals aged 65 + . We ascertained information on acute pancreatitis diagnoses up to 90 days before pancreatic cancer and followed them for a maximum of five years. We assessed overall survival difference at 30 days, six months, and one, three and five years, comparing patients with and without coexistence of acute pancreatitis. Secondary outcomes were cancer stage and treatment. RESULTS: We identified 12,522 Danish and 37,552 US patients with pancreatic cancer (median age 71 and 78 years, respectively). In the Danish cohort, 1.4 % had acute pancreatitis before pancreatic cancer vs. 5.9 % in the US cohort. After five years of follow-up, the survival difference was 6.1 % (95 % CI: [-0.4 %, 12.6 %]) in Danish and 1.7 % (95 % CI: [0.8 %, 2.7 %]) in US patients, comparing patients with and without acute pancreatitis. Patients with acute pancreatitis had lower prevalence of metastatic tumors at diagnosis (Denmark: 42.5 % vs. 48.7 %; US: 34.4 % vs. 45.9 %) and higher resection frequencies (Denmark: 20.1 % vs. 12.1 %; US: 16.1 % vs.11.3 %) than patients without acute pancreatitis. CONCLUSIONS: Pancreatic cancer patients with acute pancreatitis diagnosed up to 90 days before cancer diagnosis had earlier stage at diagnosis and better survival than patients without acute pancreatitis.