Disparities and Underutilization of Surgery for Early Stage Small Cell Lung Cancer.

BACKGROUND: The National Comprehensive Cancer Network recommends surgical resection for stage I small cell lung cancer (SCLC). Despite these recommendations and the curative potential of such surgery, many continue to underutilize surgery. Our aim is to investigate factors that contribute to underutilization of surgery for stage I SCLC. METHODS: The National Cancer Database was queried to identify patients with SCLC stage I-IV from 2004 to 2018. Staging was defined by the American Joint Committee on Cancer guidelines. Cochran-Armitage analysis was performed to analyze trends in surgical treatment for patients diagnosed with stage I SCLC. Multivariable logistic regression assessed relationships between patient factors and surgical treatment. RESULTS: A total of 296,583 patients were diagnosed with SCLC. Of the stage I patients (n = 13,003), only 29.4.% (n = 3823) underwent surgery. Trend analysis demonstrated increased frequency of surgical treatment for stage I SCLC over years 2004 to 2017, from 14.9% to 39.6% (P < .0001). Factors that were associated with underutilization of surgery for stage I SCLC include African American race, lower median income, nonprivate insurance or Medicare, community facility, and geographic regions other than the Northeast. CONCLUSIONS: Surgical treatment for stage I SCLC remains underutilized and our study identifies notable associated factors. The recognition of these factors may help patients overcome barriers to receiving recommended treatments, improve guideline adherence, and overall quality of care for stage I SCLC patients.

Robotic assistance for quick and accurate image-guided needle placement.

Computed tomography (CT) image-guided procedures including biopsy, drug delivery, and ablation are gaining increasing application in medicine. Robotic technology holds the promise for allowing surgeons, and other proceduralists, access to such CT-guided procedures by potentially shortening training, improving accuracy, decreasing needle passes, and reducing radiation exposure. We evaluated surgeon learning and proficiency for image-guided needle placement with an FDA-cleared robotic arm. Five out of six surgeons had no prior CT-guided procedural experience, while one had prior experience with freehand CT-guided needle placement. All surgeons underwent a 60-min training with the MAXIO robot (Perfint Healthcare, Redmond, WA). The robot was used to place needles into three different pre-specified targets on a spine model. Performance time, procedural errors, and needle placement accuracy were recorded. All participants successfully placed needles into the targets using the robotic arm. The average time for needle placement was 3:44 ± 1:43 min. Time for needle placement decreased with subsequent attempts, with average third placement taking 2:29 ± 1:51 min less than the first attempt. The average vector distance from the target was 2.3 ± 1.2 mm. One error resulted in the need for reimaging by CT scan. No errant needle placement occurred. Surgeons (attending fellows and residents) without previous experience and minimal training could successfully place percutaneous needles under CT guidance quickly, accurately, and reproducibly using a robotic arm. This suggests that robotic technology may be used to facilitate surgeon adoption of CT image-guided needle-based procedures in the future.

Association of Living in Urban Food Deserts with Mortality from Breast and Colorectal Cancer.

BACKGROUND: Food deserts are neighborhoods with low access to healthy foods and are associated with poor health metrics. We investigated association of food desert residence and cancer outcomes. METHODS: In this population-based study, data from the 2000-2012 California Cancer Registry was used to identify patients with stage II/III breast or colorectal cancer. Patient residence at time of diagnosis was linked by census tract to food desert using the USDA Food Access Research Atlas. Treatment and outcomes were compared by food desert residential status. RESULTS: Among 64,987 female breast cancer patients identified, 66.8% were < 65 years old, and 5.7% resided in food deserts. Five-year survival for food desert residents was 78% compared with 80% for non-desert residents (p < 0.0001). Among 48,666 colorectal cancer patients identified, 50.4% were female, 39% were > 65 years old, and 6.4% resided in food deserts. Five-year survival for food desert residents was 60% compared with 64% for non-desert residents (p < 0.001). Living in food deserts was significantly associated with diabetes, tobacco use, poor insurance coverage, and low socioeconomic status (p < 0.05) for both cancers. There was no significant difference in rates of surgery or chemotherapy by food desert residential status for either diagnosis. Multivariable analyses showed that food desert residence was associated with higher mortality. CONCLUSION: Survival, despite treatment for stage II/III breast and colorectal cancers was worse for those living in food deserts. This association remained significant without differences in use of surgery or chemotherapy, suggesting factors other than differential care access may link food desert residence and cancer outcomes.

Efficiency improvement in the operating room.

BACKGROUND: In the changing health care environment, health systems, hospitals, and health care providers must focus on improving efficiency to meet an increasing demand for high-quality, low-cost health care. Much has been written about strategies and efforts to improve efficiency in the perioperative periods, yet the time when the patient is in the operating room-the intraoperative period-has received less attention. Yet, this is the period in which surgeons may have the most influence. METHODS: Systematically review published efforts to improve intraoperative efficiency; assess the outcomes of these efforts, and propose standardized reporting of future studies. RESULTS: A total of 39 studies were identified that met inclusion criteria. These divided naturally into small (single operative team), medium (multi-operative team), and large (institutional) interventions. Most studies used time or money as their metric for efficiency, though others were used as well. CONCLUSIONS: There is substantial opportunity to enhance operating room efficiency during the intraoperative period. Surgeons may have a particular role in procedural efficiency, which has been relatively unstudied. Common themes were standardizing tasks, collecting and using actionable data, and maintaining effective team communication.

Reconstructive approach to hostile cranioplasty: A review of the University of Chicago experience.

BACKGROUND: Hostile sites for cranioplasty occur in patients with a history of radiation, infection, failed cranioplasty, CSF leak or acute infection. We review our series of autologous cranioplasties and present an approach to decision-making for reconstructing these complex defects. METHODS: Patients with cranioplasty of a hostile cranial site at the University of Chicago between 2003 and 2012 were identified. They were stratified into three groups: chimeric free flap with vascularized bone (the vascular group), non-vascularized bone with local coverage (the non-vascular group) and non-vascularized bone with free flap (the mixed group). The primary outcome measure was a major complication in the year following cranioplasty, identified by flap or bone graft failure. RESULTS: We reviewed 33 cases; 14 "vascular", 13 "non-vascular", and 8 "mixed". There was no difference in flap or bone graft failure rates, which were 7% (1/14) for the vascular group, 8% (1/13) for the non-vascular group, and 0% for the mixed group (p = NS). Overall complication rate was statistically different between the three groups (p = 0.01). The non-vascular group had the lowest complication rate (31%). Based on our data we developed an assessment score (The University of Chicago CRAnial Severity Score of Hostility, CRASSH) for patient and treatment stratification. CONCLUSIONS: Vascularized, non-vascularized and mixed reconstructive methods can be used successfully in these challenging situations. We offer the CRASSH to aid in aligning patients with the most appropriate autologous reconstruction method for their hostile cranial sites.

History of synthetic materials in alloplastic cranioplasty.

When faced with calvarial defects, surgeons have long searched for repair materials. General criteria include ease of use, low cost, availability, cosmetic shape, and osteointegrative potential. While autologous bone is widely used and favored in contemporary reconstructive procedures, synthetic alternatives have been used throughout history and are necessary in current practice for select cases when autograft reconstruction is not an option (such as cases with severe bony comminution, bone graft resorption, infection, and limited donor site options). For centuries, surgeons have experimented with metals, ceramics, plastics, and later, resorbable polymers. This paper provides a tour of the materials that have been used and experimented with throughout the history of alloplastic cranioplasty.

Timing of administration of bevacizumab chemotherapy affects wound healing after chest wall port placement.

BACKGROUND: The authors investigated how the timing of administration of bevacizumab, a targeted vascular endothelial growth factor-inhibiting chemotherapeutic agent, affected the risk of wound healing in patients undergoing chest wall port placement. METHODS: The authors performed a retrospective search was performed of an institutional review board approved, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act compliant database between 2002 and 2008, identifying 1108 port placements in patients who were treated with bevacizumab. One hundred twenty of these ports eventually required explant. Data analyzed included patient demographics, indication for port removal, and schedule of bevacizumab therapy. RESULTS: Wound healing complications requiring port explant were seen in 0.9% of placements (10/1108). When bevacizumab was given within 1 day of port placement, the absolute risk (AR) of port removal for wound dehiscence was 2.4% (2/82), compared with 0.3% (3/1021) when 2 or more days had passed between port placement and bevacizumab administration, yielding a statistically significant relative risk (RR) of 8.1 (P < .02). Similarly, when bevacizumab was administered within 7 days of port insertion, there was a significant RR of dehiscence-related port explant (AR 1.4% vs 0.1%, RR 11.5, P < .028). However, no significant RR for dehiscence-related port removal was observed when bevacizumab was administered within 14 days (AR 0.9% vs 0.2%, RR 6.2, P < .09) or 30 days (AR 0.7% vs 0.2%, RR 3.7, P < .23) of port placement. CONCLUSIONS: The risk of a wound dehiscence requiring chest wall port explant in patients treated with bevacizumab was inversely proportional to the interval between bevacizumab administration and port placement, with significantly higher risk seen when the interval is less than 14 days.