Table 3.
Characteristics of patients who underwent surgery for colon cancer in the United Sates from Jan. 1, 1993, to Dec. 31, 1996, by first diagnostic test-to-admission waiting time intervals
| Characteristic | Wait time; no. (%)* | p value | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1–14 d | 15–28 d | 29–42 d | ≥ 43 d | ||
| Patients | 3162 (43.1) | 2237 (30.5) | 916 (12.5) | 1017 (13.9) | 0.67 |
| Age, yr | 0.12 | ||||
| 65–73 | 1248 (45.1) | 832 (30.1) | 317 (11.5) | 369 (13.3) | |
| 74–80 | 1085 (42.5) | 772 (30.2) | 335 (13.1) | 364 (14.2) | |
| ≥ 81 | 829 (41.2) | 633 (31.5) | 264 (13.1) | 284 (14.2) | |
| Sex | 0.90 | ||||
| Female | 1760 (43.2) | 1252 (30.7) | 499 (12.3) | 564 (13.8) | |
| Male | 1402 (43.1) | 985 (30.1) | 417 (12.8) | 453 (13.9) | |
| Race | < 0.001 | ||||
| White | 2817 (43.8) | 1966 (30.6) | 790 (12.3) | 858 (13.3) | |
| Black | 113 (28.7) | 117 (29.7) | 63 (16.0) | 101 (25.6) | |
| Other | 191 (45.3) | 131 (31.0) | 52 (12.3) | 48 (11.4) | |
| Median household income† | < 0.001 | ||||
| Low | 692 (48.8) | 388 (27.4) | 155 (10.9) | 183 (12.9) | |
| Low–medium | 774 (43.0) | 590 (32.8) | 199 (11.1) | 236 (13.1) | |
| Medium–high | 771 (41.2) | 587 (31.3) | 253 (13.5) | 262 (14.0) | |
| High | 827 (40.8) | 615 (30.4) | 274 (13.5) | 309 (15.3) | |
| Comorbidity score | < 0.001 | ||||
| Score ≥ 1 | 1051 (39.9) | 820 (31.2) | 339 (12.9) | 422 (16.0) | |
| Score = 0 | 2111 (44.9) | 1417 (30.2) | 577 (12.3) | 595 (12.7) | |
| Tumour stage‡ | < 0.001 | ||||
| Localized | 1091 (36.0) | 967 (31.9) | 431 (14.2) | 544 (17.9) | |
| Regional | 1515 (47.4) | 981 (30.7) | 352 (11.0) | 350 (10.9) | |
| Distant | 529 (52.7) | 266 (26.4) | 120 (12.0) | 89 (8.9) | |
| Hospital volume§ | < 0.001 | ||||
| Low | 877 (49.7) | 510 (28.9) | 185 (10.5) | 192 (10.9) | |
| Low–medium | 749 (42.5) | 533 (30.3) | 223 (12.7) | 256 (14.5) | |
| Medium–high | 774 (42.1) | 568 (30.9) | 246 (13.4) | 249 (13.6) | |
| High | 762 (38.7) | 626 (31.8) | 262 (13.3) | 320 (16.2) | |
| In-hospital mortality, % | 1.7 | 1.6 | 1.3 | 1.4 | 0.75 |
*
Unless otherwise indicated.
†
We defined median household income as low (≤ $29 726), low–medium ($29 727–$38 478), medium–high ($38 479–$48 015) or high (≥ $48 016).
‡
We defined tumour stages as follows: localized = confined to bowel wall, regional = local lymph nodes involved, distant = spread to other organs.
§
Hospital procedure volume was based on major colon resections for the period of Jan. 1, 1993, to Dec. 31, 1996: low (≤ 34), low–medium (35–62), medium–high (63–97) and high (≥ 98).