Impact of mesothelioma histologic subtype on outcomes in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database.

BACKGROUND: This study was conducted to determine how malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) histology was associated with the use of surgery and survival. METHODS: Overall survival of patients with stage I-III epithelioid, sarcomatoid, and biphasic MPM in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database from 2004-2010 was evaluated using multivariate Cox proportional hazards models. RESULTS: Of 1183 patients who met inclusion criteria, histologic subtype was epithelioid in 811 patients (69%), biphasic in 148 patients (12%), and sarcomatoid in 224 patients (19%). Median survival was 14 mo in the epithelioid group, 10 mo in the biphasic group, and 4 mo in the sarcomatoid group (P < 0.01). Cancer-directed surgery was used more often in patients with epithelioid (37%, 299/811) and biphasic (44%, 65/148) histologies as compared with patients with sarcomatoid histology (26%, 58/224; P < 0.01). Among patients who underwent surgery, median survival was 19 mo in the epithelioid group, 12 mo in the biphasic group, and 4 mo in the sarcomatoid group (P < 0.01). In multivariate analysis, surgery was associated with improved survival in the epithelioid group (hazard ratio [HR] 0.72; P < 0.01) but not in biphasic (HR 0.73; P = 0.19) or sarcomatoid (HR 0.79; P = 0.18) groups. CONCLUSIONS: Cancer-directed surgery is associated with significantly improved survival for MPM patients with epithelioid histology, but patients with sarcomatoid and biphasic histologies have poor prognoses that may not be favored by operative treatment. The specific histology should be identified before treatment, so that surgery can be offered to patients with epithelioid histology, as these patients are most likely to benefit.

A Minimally Invasive Approach to Lobectomy After Induction Therapy Does Not Compromise Survival.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of a video-assisted thoracoscopic (VATS) approach on outcomes in patients who underwent lobectomy after induction therapy. METHODS: Outcomes of patients with T2-T4, N0, M0 and T1-T4, N1-N2, M0 non-small-cell lung cancer who received induction chemotherapy or chemoradiation followed by lobectomy in the National Cancer Data Base (2010-2014) were assessed using Kaplan-Meier, propensity score-matched, multivariable logistic regression and Cox proportional hazards analyses. RESULTS: In the National Cancer Data Base, 2887 lobectomy patients met inclusion criteria (VATS 676 [23%]; thoracotomy 2211 [77%]). Of the VATS cases, patients who underwent induction chemoradiation were more likely to undergo conversion (adjusted odds ratio 1.70, P = .05). Compared with an open approach, VATS was associated with decreased length of stay (median: 5 days vs 6 days, P < .01) and no significant differences in 30-day mortality (VATS [1.5% (n = 10)] vs open [2.6% (n = 58)]; P = .13) and 90-day mortality (VATS [3.7% (n = 25)] vs open [5.6% (n = 124)]; P = .14). There were no significant differences in 5-year survival between the VATS and open groups in both the entire cohort (VATS [50.3%] vs open [52.3%]; P = .83) and in a propensity score-matched analysis of 876 patients; furthermore, a VATS approach was not associated with worse survival in multivariable analysis (hazard ratio 1.02; 95% confidence interval 0.86-1.20; P = .83). CONCLUSIONS: In this national analysis, a VATS approach for lobectomy in patients who received induction therapy for locally advanced non-small-cell lung cancer was not associated with worse short-term or long-term outcomes when compared with an open approach.

Impact of Age on Long-Term Outcomes of Surgery for Malignant Pleural Mesothelioma.

BACKGROUND: Although malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) is generally a disease associated with more advanced age, the association of age, treatment, and outcomes has not been well-characterized. We evaluated the impact of age on outcomes in patients with MPM to provide data for use in the treatment selection process for elderly patients with potentially resectable disease. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Overall survival (OS) of patients younger than 70 and 70 years or older with Stage I to III MPM who underwent cancer-directed surgery or nonoperative management in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database (2004-2010) was evaluated using multivariable Cox proportional hazard models and propensity score-matched analysis. RESULTS: Cancer-directed surgery was used in 284 of 879 (32%) patients who met inclusion criteria, and was associated with improved OS in multivariable analysis (hazard ratio, 0.71; P = .001). Cancer-directed surgery was used much less commonly in patients 70 years and older compared with patients younger than 70 years (22% [109/497] vs. 46% [175/382]; P < .001), but patients 70 years and older had improved 1-year (59.4% vs. 37.9%) and 3-year (15.4% vs. 8.0%) OS compared with nonoperative management. The benefit of surgery in patients 70 years and older was observed even after propensity score-matched analysis was used to control for selection bias. CONCLUSION: Surgical treatment is associated with improved survival compared with nonoperative management for both patients younger than 70 years and patients aged 70 years or older.

Impact of patient selection and treatment strategies on outcomes after lobectomy for biopsy-proven stage IIIA pN2 non-small cell lung cancer.

OBJECTIVES: We evaluated the impact of patient selection and treatment strategies on long-term outcomes of patients who had lobectomy after induction therapy for stage IIIA pN2 non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). METHODS: The impact of various patient selection, induction therapy and operative strategies on survival of patients with biopsy-proven stage IIIA pN2 NSCLC who received induction chemotherapy ± radiation followed by lobectomy from 1995 to 2012 was assessed using Cox proportional hazards analysis. RESULTS: From 1995 to 2012, 111 patients had lobectomy for stage IIIA pN2 NSCLC after chemotherapy ± radiation with an overall 5-year survival of 39%. The use of induction chemoradiation decreased over time; from 1996 to 2007, 46/65 (71%) patients underwent induction chemoradiation, whereas from 2007 to 2012, 36/46 (78%) patients underwent induction chemotherapy. The use of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) increased over the time period of the study, from 0/26 (0%) in 1996-2001, to 4/39 (10%) in 2002-07 to 33/46 (72%) in 2008-12. Compared with patients given induction chemotherapy alone, patients given additional induction radiation were more likely to have complete pathologic response (30 vs 11%, P = 0.01) but had worse 5-year survival in univariable analysis (31 vs 48%, log-rank P = 0.021). Patients who underwent pathologic mediastinal restaging following induction therapy but prior to resection had an improved overall survival compared with patients who did not undergo pathologic mediastinal restaging {5-year survival: 45.2 [95% confidence interval (CI): 33.9-55.9] vs 13.9% (95% CI: 2.5-34.7); log-rank, P = 0.004}. In multivariable analysis, the particular induction therapy strategy and the surgical approach used, as well as the extent of mediastinal disease were not important predictors of survival. However, pathologic mediastinal restaging was associated with improved survival (HR 0.39; 95% CI: 0.21-0.72; P = 0.003). CONCLUSIONS: For patients with stage IIIA pN2 NSCLC, the VATS approach or the addition of radiation to induction therapy can be selectively employed without compromising survival. The strategy of assessing response to induction therapy with pathologic mediastinal restaging allows one to select appropriate patients for complete resection and is associated with a 5-year overall survival of 39% in this population.

Long-term survival following open versus thoracoscopic lobectomy after preoperative chemotherapy for non-small cell lung cancer.

OBJECTIVES: Video-assisted thoracoscopic (VATS) lobectomy is increasingly accepted for the management of early-stage non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), but its role for locally advanced cancers has not been as well characterized. We compared outcomes of patients who received induction therapy followed by lobectomy, via VATS or thoracotomy. METHODS: Perioperative complications and long-term survival of all patients with NSCLC who received induction chemotherapy (ICT) (with or without induction radiation therapy) followed by lobectomy from 1996-2012 were assessed using Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional hazard analysis. Propensity score-matched comparisons were used to assess the potential impact of selection bias. RESULTS: From 1996 to 2012, 272 patients met inclusion criteria and underwent lobectomy after ICT: 69 (25%) by VATS and 203 (75%) by thoracotomy. An 'intent-to-treat' analysis was performed. Compared with thoracotomy patients, VATS patients had a higher clinical stage, were older, had greater body mass index, and were more likely to have coronary disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Induction radiation was used more commonly in thoracotomy patients [VATS 28% (n = 19) vs open 72% (n = 146), P < 0.001]. Thirty-day mortality was similar between the VATS [3% (n = 2)] and open [4% (n = 8)] groups (P = 0.69). Seven (10%) of the VATS cases were converted to thoracotomy due to difficulty in dissection from fibrotic tissue and adhesions (n = 5) or bleeding (n = 2); none of these conversions led to perioperative deaths. In univariate analysis, VATS patients had improved 3-year survival compared with thoracotomy (61% vs 43%, P = 0.010). In multivariable analysis, the VATS approach showed a trend towards improved survival, but this did not reach statistical significance (hazard ratio, 0.56; 95% confidence interval, 0.32-1.01; P = 0.053). Moreover, a propensity score-matched analysis balancing patient characteristics demonstrated that the VATS approach had similar survival to an open approach (P = 0.56). CONCLUSIONS: VATS lobectomy in patients treated with induction therapy for locally advanced NSCLC is feasible and effective and does not appear to compromise oncologic outcomes.