TABLE 1.
Characteristics of patients with stage IV colon cancer in SEER-Medicare, 1991–2005, with postdiagnosis bowel obstruction, stratified by management strategy
| Overall n = 1004
|
Nonsurgical management n = 723
|
Surgical management n = 281
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| n | % | n | % | n | % | χ2p | |
| Age at obstruction | 0.542 | ||||||
| 65–69 | 164 | (16.3) | 119 | (16.5) | 45 | (16.0) | |
| 70–74 | 305 | (30.4) | 228 | (31.5) | 77 | (27.4) | |
| 75–79 | 260 | (25.9) | 185 | (25.6) | 75 | (26.7) | |
| ≥80 | 275 | (27.4) | 191 | (26.4) | 84 | (29.9) | |
| Sex | 0.052 | ||||||
| Male | 453 | (45.1) | 340 | (47.0) | 113 | (40.2) | |
| Female | 551 | (54.9) | 383 | (53.0) | 168 | (59.8) | |
| Race | 0.437 | ||||||
| White | 843 | (84.0) | 603 | (83.4) | 240 | (85.4) | |
| Other/unknown | 161 | (16.0) | 120 | (16.6) | 41 | (14.6) | |
| Marital status | 0.716 | ||||||
| Married | 563 | (56.1) | 408 | (56.4) | 155 | (55.2) | |
| Unmarrieda | 441 | (43.9) | 315 | (43.6) | 126 | (44.8) | |
| Comorbidity at obstruction | 0.891 | ||||||
| None | 490 | (48.8) | 353 | (48.8) | 137 | (48.8) | |
| Charlson index = 1 | 284 | (28.3) | 202 | (27.9) | 82 | (29.2) | |
| Charlson index ≥2 | 230 | (22.9) | 168 | (23.2) | 62 | (22.1) | |
| Year of obstruction | 0.097 | ||||||
| 1991–1996 | 311 | (31.0) | 210 | (29.0) | 101 | (35.9) | |
| 1997–2001 | 302 | (30.1) | 226 | (31.3) | 76 | (27.0) | |
| 2002–2006 | 391 | (38.9) | 287 | (39.7) | 104 | (37.0) | |
| Histology | 0.707 | ||||||
| Nonmucinous | 822 | (81.9) | 594 | (82.2) | 228 | (81.1) | |
| Mucinous | 182 | (18.1) | 129 | (17.8) | 53 | (18.9) | |
| Grade | 0.551 | ||||||
| Well and moderately differentiated | 579 | (57.7) | 411 | (56.8) | 168 | (59.8) | |
| Poorly differentiated | 282 | (28.1) | 204 | (28.2) | 78 | (27.8) | |
| Unknown | 143 | (14.2) | 108 | (14.9) | 35 | (12.5) | |
| Cancer site | 0.056 | ||||||
| Left | 374 | (37.3) | 253 | (35.0) | 121 | (43.1) | |
| Right | 574 | (57.2) | 427 | (59.1) | 147 | (52.3) | |
| NOS | 56 | (5.6) | 43 | (5.9) | 13 | (4.6) | |
| Obstruction at cancer diagnosis | 0.246 | ||||||
| No | 843 | (84.0) | 601 | (83.1) | 242 | (86.1) | |
| Yes | 161 | (16.0) | 122 | (16.9) | 39 | (13.9) | |
| Primary tumor resection | 0.446 | ||||||
| No | 192 | (19.1) | 134 | (18.5) | 58 | (20.6) | |
| Yes | 812 | (80.9) | 589 | (81.5) | 223 | (79.4) | |
| Chemotherapy before obstruction | 0.106 | ||||||
| No | 354 | (35.3) | 265 | (36.7) | 89 | (31.7) | |
| Yes | 650 | (64.7) | 458 | (63.3) | 192 | (68.3) | |
| Node stage | 0.619 | ||||||
| N0 | 169 | (16.8) | 115 | (15.9) | 54 | (19.2) | |
| N1 | 239 | (23.8) | 172 | (23.8) | 67 | (23.8) | |
| N2 | 352 | (35.1) | 259 | (35.8) | 93 | (33.1) | |
| Missing | 244 | (24.3) | 177 | (24.5) | 67 | (23.8) | |
| Cancer diagnosis to obstruction, days, median (IQR) | 228 | (99–477) | 213 | (91–448) | 271 | (128–568) | <0.001b |
Data shown are number and percentage, except where indicated.
NOS = not otherwise specified; IQR = interquartile range; SEER = Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results.
a
Includes 18 with unknown marital status (2.3%).
b
All subjects and all events, Mann-Whitney U test.