Table 4.
Baseline characteristics of cancer patients with or without VTE
| Patients without VTE | VTE (algorithm 2&) | P-value | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N = 43,382 | N = 473 | ||||
| Mean age (years) | 59.52 ± 15.92 | 60.86 ± 14.26 | 0.0440* | ||
| No. | % | No. | % | ||
| Age groups (years) | 0.0005* | ||||
| ≤18 | 502 | 1.2 | 1 | 0.2 | |
| 19 – 40 | 4,431 | 10.2 | 36 | 7.6 | |
| 41 – 60 | 16,847 | 38.8 | 179 | 37.9 | |
| 61 – 80 | 18,183 | 41.9 | 227 | 48.0 | |
| ≥81 | 3,419 | 7.9 | 30 | 6.3 | |
| Gender | 0.3695 | ||||
| Male | 22,856 | 52.7 | 259 | 54.8 | |
| Female | 20,526 | 47.3 | 214 | 45.2 | |
| Prior history of VTE | 67 | 0.2 | 5 | 1.1 | 0.0011* |
| Hypertension | 15,981 | 36.8 | 223 | 47.2 | <0.0001* |
| Heart failure | 1,793 | 4.1 | 31 | 6.6 | 0.0087* |
| Ischemic heart disease | 6,005 | 13.8 | 86 | 18.2 | 0.0066* |
| Atrial fibrillation | 649 | 1.5 | 9 | 1.9 | 0.4522 |
| Renal insufficiency | 3,270 | 7.5 | 53 | 11.2 | 0.0027* |
| Chronic lung disease | 8,211 | 18.9 | 95 | 20.1 | 0.5229 |
| Diabetes mellitus | 7,874 | 18.2 | 97 | 20.5 | 0.1861 |
| Stroke | 2,690 | 6.2 | 30 | 6.3 | 0.8988 |
| Degenerative & paralytic neurologic disease | 3,665 | 8.5 | 47 | 9.9 | 0.2474 |
| Rheumatologic diseases | 573 | 1.3 | 12 | 2.5 | 0.0218* |
| Liver disease | 7,959 | 18.4 | 119 | 25.2 | 0.0001* |
| Arterial embolism | 165 | 0.4 | 7 | 1.5 | 0.0028* |
| Anemia | 5,179 | 11.9 | 62 | 13.1 | 0.4354 |
| Varicose veins of lower extremities | 170 | 0.4 | 5 | 1.1 | 0.0418* |
| Peripheral vascular disease | 515 | 1.2 | 9 | 1.9 | 0.1543 |
| Pregnancy | 74 | 0.2 | 2 | 0.4 | 0.1979 |
| Infectious diseases | 15,809 | 36.4 | 242 | 51.2 | <0.0001* |
| Major trauma before VTE event | 1260 | 2.9 | 18 | 3.8 | 0.2465 |
| Major spine trauma | 426 | 1.0 | 6 | 1.3 | 0.4775 |
| Major extremity trauma | 861 | 2.0 | 12 | 2.5 | 0.3924 |
| Major surgery before VTE event | 10,152 | 23.4 | 286 | 60.5 | <0.0001* |
| CNS | 457 | 1.1 | 8 | 1.7 | 0.1779 |
| Thorax | 4,706 | 10.9 | 158 | 33.4 | <0.0001* |
| Abdomen | 6,094 | 14.1 | 167 | 35.3 | <0.0001* |
| Urogenital | 1,397 | 3.2 | 43 | 9.1 | <0.0001* |
| Orthopedic | 164 | 0.4 | 1 | 0.2 | 1.0000 |
| Hospitalization | 13,909 | 32.1 | 284 | 60.0 | <0.0001* |
| Blood transfusion | 3,665 | 8.5 | 49 | 10.4 | 0.1376 |
| Active therapy | 9,079 | 20.9 | 221 | 46.7 | <0.0001* |
| Chemotherapy only | 5,151 | 11.9 | 182 | 38.5 | <0.0001* |
| Radiation only | 214 | 0.5 | 2 | 0.4 | 1.0000 |
| Hormone therapy only | 3,180 | 7.3 | 17 | 3.6 | 0.0020* |
| Combination therapy | 534 | 1.2 | 20 | 4.2 | <0.0001* |
| Use of erythropoietin stimulating agent (ESA) | 828 | 1.9 | 9 | 1.9 | 0.9926 |
| Use of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (GCSF) | 1,282 | 3.0 | 41 | 8.7 | <0.0001* |
| Thalidomide therapy | 27 | 0.1 | 0 | 0.0 | 1.0000 |
| Obesity | 146 | 0.3 | 5 | 1.1 | 0.0243* |
*p-value < 0.05.
&VTE algorithm 2 was based on both the hospital admission with diagnostic codes of VTE and managements of VTE (prescription of intravenous or subcutaneous (IV/SC) anticoagulants (unfractionated heparin (UFH) or low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH)) or reimbursement codes of surgical thromboectomy) during the hospital stay.