Table 2.
Comparison of clinical characteristics between patients with and without a cough
| Characteristic | Subgroup | Cough, N (%) | No Cough, N (%) | p-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean age in years (SD) | 67 years (9.02) | 66 years (8.85) | 0.56 | |
| Male sex | 57 (50) | 49 (56) | 0.34 | |
| Smoking status | Never smoked | 12 (10) | 7 (8) | 0.44 |
| Former | 73 (64) | 62 (72) | ||
| Current | 30 (26) | 17 (20) | ||
| Median no. pack years on ever smokers (25th–75th IQR) | 38 (17.5–46) | 33 (17.5–50) | 1.00 | |
| Performance status | 0 | 15 (13) | 12 (14) | 0.09 |
| 1 | 33 (29) | 39 (45) | ||
| 2 | 46 (40) | 25 (29) | ||
| 3 | 21 (18) | 11 (12) | ||
| Stage | Early NSCLC (incl IIIA) | 14 (12) | 12 (14) | 0.61 |
| Advanced NSCLC | 63 (56) | 47 (55) | ||
| Limited stage SCLC | 12 (11) | 5 (6) | ||
| Extensive stage SCLC | 24 (21) | 22 (25) | ||
| Histology | Non-small cell lung cancer | 76 (67) | 59 (68) | 1.00 |
| Small cell lung cancer | 36 (31) | 27 (31) | ||
| Mixed | 2 (2) | 1 (1) | ||
| Non-small cell lung cancer histological subtype | Adenocarcinoma | 44 (55) | 40 (65) | 0.29 |
| Squamous | 25 (31) | 16 (26) | ||
| Not otherwise specified | 10 (13) | 3 (5) | ||
| Mixed | 1 (1) | 1 (2) | ||
| Large cell | 0 (0) | 1 (2) | ||
| On anticancer therapy | Yes | 45 (40) | 47 (54) | 0.04 |
| What type of anticancer therapy | Chemotherapy | 28 (62) | 30 (65) | 0.44 |
| Radiotherapy | 3 (7) | 0 (0) | ||
| Concurrent | 2 (4) | 2 (4) | ||
| Tyrosine-kinase inhibitors | 12 (27) | 14 (31) | ||
| If not on anticancer therapy, why not | Pre-treatment | 16 (23) | 13 (31) | 0.33 |
| Post palliative treatment | 24 (34) | 18 (43) | ||
| Post curative treatment | 6 (9) | 3 (7) | ||
| No further treatment | 24 (34) | 8 (19) | ||
| Comorbidities | Nausea | 42 (36) | 33 (38) | 0.79 |
| Gastro-oesophageal reflux | 62 (54) | 44 (51) | 0.70 |
NSCLC Non-small cell lung cancer, SCLC: Small cell lung cancer