Search Results

Background: Definitive chemoradiotherapy (CRT) is recommended by the NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) for Anal Carcinoma for all patients with stage I anal canal cancer. Because these patients were not well represented in clinical trials establishing CRT as standard therapy, it is unclear whether NCCN recommendations are being closely followed for stage I disease. This study identified factors that predict for NCCN Guideline–concordant versus NCCN Guideline–discordant care. Methods: Using the National Cancer Data Base, we identified patients diagnosed with anal canal carcinoma from 2004 to 2012 who received concurrent CRT (radiotherapy [RT] 45.0–59.4 Gy with multiagent chemotherapy), RT alone (45.0–59.4 Gy), or surgical procedure alone (local tumor destruction, tumor excision, or abdominoperineal resection). Demographic and clinicopathologic factors were analyzed using the chi-square test and logistic regression modeling. Results: A total of 1,082 patients with histologically confirmed stage I anal cancer were identified, among whom 665 (61.5%) received CRT, 52 (4.8%) received RT alone, and 365 (33.7%) received only a surgical procedure. Primary analyses were restricted to patients receiving CRT or excision alone, as these were most common. Multivariable analysis identified factors independently associated with reduced odds of CRT receipt: low versus intermediate/high tumor grade (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 0.21; 95% CI, 0.14–0.29; P<.001), tumor size <1 cm vs 1 to 2 cm (AOR, 0.24; 95% CI, 0.17–0.35; P<.001), age ≥70 versus 50 to 69 years (AOR, 0.36; 95% CI, 0.24–0.54; P<.001), male sex (AOR, 0.63; 95% CI, 0.45–0.90; P=.009), and treatment at an academic versus a non-academic facility (AOR, 0.58; 95% CI, 0.41–0.81; P=.002). Conclusions: Despite the NCCN recommendation of CRT for stage I anal cancer, at least one-third of patients appear to be receiving guideline-discordant management. Excision alone is more common for patients who are elderly, are male, have small or low-grade tumors, or were evaluated at academic facilities.

Background: Optimal treatment of nonoperative patients with large, node-negative non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is poorly defined. Current NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) recommend definitive radiotherapy (RT) with or without sequential chemotherapy and do not include concurrent chemoradiotherapy (chemoRT) as a treatment option. In this study, we identified factors that predict nonadherence to NCCN Guidelines. Patients and Methods: Patients who received definitive RT for nonmetastatic, node-negative NSCLC with tumor size of 5 to 7 cm were identified in the National Cancer Database from 2004 through 2016. Patients were evaluated by RT type (stereotactic body RT [SBRT], hypofractionated RT [HFRT], or conventionally fractionated RT [CFRT]) and chemotherapy use (none, sequential, or concurrent with RT). Patients were classified as receiving NCCN-adherent (RT with or without sequential chemotherapy) or NCCN-nonadherent (concurrent chemoRT) treatment. Demographic and clinical factors were assessed with logistic regression modeling. Overall survival was evaluated with Kaplan-Meier, log-rank, and univariable/multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression analyses. Results: Among 2,020 patients in our cohort, 32% received NCCN-nonadherent concurrent chemoRT, whereas others received NCCN-adherent RT alone (51%) or sequential RT and chemotherapy (17%). CFRT was most widely used (64% CFRT vs 22% SBRT vs 14% HFRT). Multivariable analysis revealed multiple factors to be associated with NCCN-nonadherent chemoRT: age ≤70 versus >70 years (odds ratio [OR] , 2.72; P<.001), treatment at a nonacademic facility (OR, 1.65; P<.001), and tumor size 6 to 7 cm versus 5 to 6 cm (OR, 1.27; P=.026). Survival was similar between the NCCN-nonadherent chemoRT and NCCN-adherent groups (hazard ratio, 1.00; P=.992) in multivariable analysis. Conclusions: A substantial proportion of inoperable patients with large, node-negative NSCLC are not treated according to NCCN Guidelines and receive concurrent chemoRT. Younger patients with larger tumors receiving treatment at nonacademic medical centers were more likely to receive NCCN-nonadherent therapy, but adherence to NCCN Guidelines was not associated with differences in overall survival.