Table 4.
The relative risk of not coming home following WBRT by patient and tumor characteristics
| Characteristics | N (%) of patients not coming home | Adjusted ORa (95% CI) | Adjusted ORb (95% CI) |
|---|---|---|---|
| At the time of WBRT | |||
| Age (years) | |||
| 30–49 | 6 (9) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| 50–69 | 37 (27) | 3.76 (1.48–9.53) | 2.60 (0.84–8.08) |
| 70+ | 14 (38) | 6.45 (2.16–19.2) | 3.36 (0.91–13.18) |
| Calendar year | |||
| 1999–2006 | 21 (21) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| 2007–2012 | 36 (26) | 1.06 (0.55–2.03) | 1.07 (0.49–2.38) |
| No of brain metastases | |||
| 1–3 (Size 5–55 mm) | 8 (24) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| 4–6 | 8 (30) | 1.72 (0.48–6.12) | 2.44 (0.50–12.1) |
| 7–9 | 2 (18) | 0.73 (0.13–4.56) | 1.40 (0.18–11.0) |
| Massive | 26 (22) | 1.19 (0.43–3.27) | 1.57 (0.47–5.18) |
| Leptomeningeal | 13 (25) | 1.26 (0.42–3.80) | 1.21 (0.33–4.37) |
| Time between diagnosis and WBRT | |||
| 0–3 years | 30 (32) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| 3–6 years | 12 (17) | 0.45 (0.20–1.00) | 0.54 (0.20–1.44) |
| >6 years | 15 (20) | 0.43 (0.20–0.93) | 0.47 (0.19–1.17) |
| WBRT dose | |||
| 4 Gy × 5 | 51 (24) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| 3 Gy × 10 | 6 (22) | 1.19 (0.43–2.30) | 1.54 (0.43–5.46) |
| Other metastases | |||
| Only brain | 14 (23) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| Brain + visceralc | 9 (18) | 0.75 (0.27–2.03) | 0.66 (0.20–2.21) |
| Brain + non viscerald | 11 (24) | 1.20 (0.46–3.11) | 1.82 (0.53–6.24) |
| Brain + multiple | 23 (27) | 1.85 (0.80–4.26) | 1.24 (0.46–3.34) |
| WHO performance status score | |||
| 0–1 | 4 (3) | 1.0 (ref) | – |
| 2 | 25 (35) | 16.9 (5.39–53.1) | – |
| 3–4 | 27 (66) | 54.5 (15.7–189) | – |
| Family situation | |||
| Married/cohabitation | 25 (26) | 0.63 (0.30–1–31) | 0.54 (0.22–1.37) |
| Married/cohabitation w/children | 8 (11) | 0.38 (0.13–1–09) | 0.21 (0.06–0.78) |
| Alone w/children | 1(8) | 0.22 (0.02–1.97) | 1.27 (0.11–14.97) |
| Alone | 23 (37) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| Level of care (1 week before WBRT) | |||
| Home | 12 (8) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| Hospital | 40 (45) | 10.2 (4.63–22.4) | 5.20 (2.12–12.7) |
| Palliative inpatient care | 4 (63) | 21.2 (4.03–111) | 5.27 (0.89–31.06) |
| At primary breast cancer diagnosis | |||
| ER | |||
| ER+ | 31 (23) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| ER− | 26 (25) | 1.11 (0.57–2.14) | 1.19 (0.52–2.74) |
| HER2 | |||
| HER2+ | 14 (18) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| HER2− | 31 (28) | 2.04 (0.93–4.49) | 1.97 (0.70–5.54) |
| Subtype | |||
| Luminal A | 12 (18) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| Luminal B | 10 (28) | 1.69 (0.60–4.80) | 2.66 (0.66–10.72) |
| HER2 type | 4 (9) | 0.36 (0.10–1.30) | 0.39 (0.09–1.80) |
| Triple negative | 19 (42) | 2.57 (1.02–6.50) | 2.85 (0.89–9.15) |
| Palliative treatments before WBRT | |||
| Palliative trastuzumab | |||
| Yes | 10 (17) | 0.63 (0.28–1.40) | 0.68 (0.25–1.90) |
| No | 46 (27) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| No of palliative chemotherapy regimens | |||
| 0 | 22 (42) | 1.0 (ref) | 1.0 (ref) |
| 1+ | 35 (19) | 0.42 (20–0.85) | 0.50 (0.21–1.19) |
Statistically significant results are marked in bold
aAdjusted for age at WBRT (in 10-year intervals) and calendar period of WBRT (in 3-year intervals)
bAdjusted for WHO performance status score, age at WBRT (in 10-year intervals) and calendar period of WBRT (in 3-year intervals
cLung and/or liver metastases
dSkin, loco-regional and/or bone metastases