Table 1.
Patient characteristics according to cancer type. Data are given as frequency (percentage) unless otherwise specified.
| Metastatic Lung Cancer | Metastatic Colorectal Cancer | |
|---|---|---|
| Number of patients | 1535 | 620 |
| Sex3 | ||
| Male | 952 (62) | 368 (59) |
| Female | 583 (38) | 252 (41) |
| Race3 | ||
| White | 1210 (79) | 413 (67) |
| Black | 170 (11) | 121 (20) |
| Asian | 83 (5) | 37 (6) |
| Other | 69 (4) | 47 (8) |
| Missing | 3 (0.2) | 2 (0.3) |
| Ethnicity3 | ||
| Hispanic | 76 (5) | 47 (8) |
| Non-Hispanic | 1442 (94) | 562 (91) |
| Missing | 17 (1) | 11 (2) |
| Marital status3 | ||
| Married/living as married | 917 (60) | 369 (60) |
| Non-married | 607 (40) | 246 (40) |
| Missing | 11 (1) | 5 (1) |
| Age (years)3 | ||
| 21-54 | 193 (13) | 151 (24) |
| 55-59 | 187 (12) | 73 (12) |
| 60-64 | 204 (13) | 83 (13) |
| 65-69 | 245 (16) | 85 (14) |
| 70-74 | 276 (18) | 77 (12) |
| 75-79 | 214 (14) | 51 (8) |
| ≥ 80 | 216 (14) | 100 (16) |
| Comorbidity score at diagnosis*2 | ||
| None | 312 (20) | 194 (31) |
| Mild | 576 (38) | 240 (39) |
| Moderate | 328 (21) | 109 (18) |
| Severe | 319 (21) | 77 (12) |
| Number of hospitalizations in 90 days before diagnosis2 |
||
| 0 | 963 (63) | 393 (63) |
| 1 | 497 (32) | 203 (33) |
| 2 to 4 | 75 (5) | 24 (4) |
| Speaks English in home1 | ||
| Yes | 1397 (91) | 541 (87) |
| No | 51 (3) | 30 (5) |
| Missing | 87 (6) | 49 (8) |
| Education1 | ||
| < High school | 352 (23) | 105 (17) |
| High school/some college | 902 (59) | 361 (58) |
| ≥ college degree | 252 (16) | 145 (23) |
| Missing | 29 (2) | 9 (1) |
| Income ($)1 | ||
| < 20,000 | 460 (30) | 161 (26) |
| 20,000-39,999 | 428 (28) | 142 (23) |
| 40,000-59,999 | 184 (12) | 78 (13) |
| ≥ 60,000 | 215 (14) | 118 (19) |
| Missing | 248 (16) | 121 (20) |
| Insurance3 | ||
| Medicare | 220 (14) | 82 (13) |
| Medicaid | 179 (12) | 78 (13) |
| Medicare + Private | 566 (37) | 166 (27) |
| Private | 383 (25) | 218 (35) |
| Other | 179 (12) | 73 (12) |
| Missing | 8 (1) | 3 (0.5) |
| HMO member4 | ||
| Yes | 412 (27) | 158 (25) |
| No | 1123 (73) | 462 (75) |
| PDCR Site4 | ||
| Cancer Research Network | 246 (16) | 92 (15) |
| Northern California | 324 (21) | 157 (25) |
| Alabama | 188 (12) | 99 (16) |
| Los Angeles | 248 (16) | 112 (18) |
| Iowa | 361 (24) | 0 (0) |
| North Carolina | 0 (0) | 97 (16) |
| Veterans Administration | 168 (11) | 63 (10) |
| Months from diagnosis to baseline interview |
||
| Median (interquartile range) | 5 (4, 7) | 5 (4, 6) |
| Range | 0, 25 | 2, 27 |
| Baseline interview completed | ||
| Patient | 522 (34) | 357 (58) |
| Brief | 130 (8) | 73 (12) |
| By surrogate: patient too sick | 134 (9) | 56 (9) |
| By surrogate: patient deceased | 749 (49) | 134 (22) |
| Followup interview completed** | ||
| Survivor | 252 (32) | 270 (56) |
| Decedent: by surrogate | 288 (37) | 82 (17) |
| Not completed: patient alive at baseline |
246 (31) | 134 (28) |
| Vital status at end of abstraction period | ||
| Alive | 322 (21) | 363 (59) |
| Dead | 1213 (79) | 257 (41) |
| Median survival, months | ||
| (25th percentile, 75th percentile) | 6 (2, 13) |
20 (7, 46) |
PDCR: Primary Data Collection and Research
Defined using the Adult Comorbidity Evaluation 27, a validated medical record-based system that assigns each patient a 4-category comorbidity score (none, mild, moderate, or severe) based on severity noted across multiple body systems, from 3 months prior to diagnosis to initial treatment.
Among patients alive at baseline interview and thus eligible for followup interview.
Data obtained from baseline or follow-up interviews
Data obtained from medical record abstraction
Data obtained primarily from baseline interview; if non-response to interview item, then data obtained secondarily from medical record abstraction; if both data sources are missing, then data are obtained from the administrative data (or tracking records)
Data obtained from administrative data (or tracking records)