Does facility volume influence survival in patients with primary malignant bone tumors of the vertebral column? A comparative cohort study.

Abstract

Background context

Facility volume has been correlated with survival in many cancers. This relationship has not been established in primary malignant bone tumors of the vertebral column (BTVC).

Purpose

To investigate whether facility patient volume is associated with overall survival in patients with primary malignant BTVCs.

Study design

Retrospective comparative cohort.

Patient sample

Adult patients with chordomas, chondrosarcomas, or osteosarcomas of the mobile spine.

Outcome measures

Five-year survival.

Methods

We retrospectively analyzed 733 patients with primary malignant BTVCs in the national cancer database from 2004 through 2015. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to correlate specific outcome measures with facility volume. Volume was stratified based on cumulative martingale residuals to determine the inflection point of negative to positive impact on survival based on the patient cohort. Long-term survival was compared between patients treated at high and low volume using the Kaplan-Meier method. Only patients with malignant primary tumors were considered eligible for inclusion; patients with incomplete treatment data or benign tumors were excluded.

Results

Patients treated at high-volume centers (HVCs) were younger (p=.0003) and more likely to be insured (p<.0001). There were no significant differences in tumor characteristics. Patients treated at high-volume facilities had improved 5-year survival of 71% versus 58% at low-volume centers (p<.0001). Patients treated at HVCs were more likely to receive surgical treatment (91% vs. 80%, p<.0001); if surgery was performed, they were more likely to undergo an en bloc resection (48% vs. 30%, p<.0001). However, there were no differences in margin status or utilization of radiotherapy or chemotherapy between HVCs and low-volume centers. In a multivariate analysis, facility volume was independently associated with improved survival overall (HR 0.75 [0.58-0.97], p=.03).

Conclusions

Primary malignant BTVCs are rare, even for HVCs. Despite this, patient survival was significantly improved when treatment was performed at HVCs.

Department

Description

Provenance

Citation

Published Version (Please cite this version)

10.1016/j.spinee.2020.02.020

Publication Info

Lazarides, Alexander L, David L Kerr, Brian L Dial, John R Steele, Whitney O Lane, Dan G Blazer, Brian E Brigman, Sergio Mendoza-Lattes, et al. (2020). Does facility volume influence survival in patients with primary malignant bone tumors of the vertebral column? A comparative cohort study. The spine journal : official journal of the North American Spine Society, 20(7). pp. 1106–1113. 10.1016/j.spinee.2020.02.020 Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/31377.

This is constructed from limited available data and may be imprecise. To cite this article, please review & use the official citation provided by the journal.

Scholars@Duke

Lane

Whitney O'Neill Lane

Assistant Professor of Surgery
Blazer

Dan German Blazer

Professor of Surgery
Brigman

Brian Eugene Brigman

Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery
Erickson

Melissa Maria Erickson

Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery

I am a spine surgeon who provides surgical management of cervical, thoracic  and lumbar spine conditions, including cervical myelopathy, herniated discs, deformity, stenosis, tumor and trauma.  I provide both minimally invasive procedures as well as traditional surgical techniques.

Eward

William Curtis Eward

Frank H. Bassett III, M. D. Associate Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery

I am an Orthopaedic Oncologist, with dual clinical degrees (MD and DVM).  I treat complex sarcomas in people and animals.  My laboratory studies comparative oncology - discoveries we can make about cancer by analyses across different species.


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