Insurance status and risk of suicide mortality among patients with cancer: a retrospective study based on the SEER database

Suicide among lymphoma patients

BACKGROUND

Higher suicide rates were observed in patients diagnosed with lymphoma. In this study, we accurately identified patients with high-risk lymphoma for suicide by constructing a nomogram with a view to effective interventions and reducing the risk of suicide.

METHODS

235,806 patients diagnosed with lymphoma between 2000 and 2020 were picked from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database and randomly divided into training (N = 165,064) and validation set (N = 70,742). A combination of the Least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) and Cox proportional hazards regression identified the predictors that constructed the nomogram. To assess the discrimination, calibration, clinical applicability, and generalization of this nomogram, we implemented receiver operating characteristic curves (ROC), calibration curves, decision curve analysis (DCA), and internal validation. The robustness of the results was assessed by the competing risks regression model.

RESULTS

Age at diagnosis, gender, ethnicity, marital status, stage, surgery, radiotherapy, and annual household income were key predictors of suicide in lymphoma patients. A nomogram was created to visualize the risk of suicide after a lymphoma diagnosis. The c-index for the training set was 0.773, and the validation set was 0.777. The calibration curve for the nomogram fitted well with the diagonal and the clinical decision curve indicated its clinical benefit.

LIMITATION

The effects of unmeasured and unnoticed biases and confounders were difficult to eliminate due to retrospective studies.

CONCLUSION

A convenient and reliable model has been constructed that will help to individualize and accurately quantify the risk of suicide in patients diagnosed with lymphoma.

Effect of Socioeconomic Disparities on Suicide Risk in Patients With Prostate Cancer During 2005 to 2020: A Population Study

PURPOSE

To determine whether socioeconomic disparities have an impact on the likelihood of suicide among prostate cancer patients.

METHODS

Data were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database for patients diagnosed with malignant prostate cancer between 2005 and 2020. The socioeconomic disparities of the patients were evaluated by median household income (MHI) and ethnicity. Ethnicity included Spanish-Hispanic-Latino and non-Spanish-Hispanic-Latino. A Cox proportional risk model was utilized. Using the Kaplan-Meier approach, the cumulative incidence of suicide mortality was measured.

RESULTS

A total of 857,418 US population with prostate cancer were included. In the multivariate analysis, individuals with MHI over $75,000 had a lower risk of suicide mortality than those with MHI between $54,999 and $74,999 in all patients (aHRs: 0.693, 95 CI%: 0.603-0.797). Spanish-Hispanic-Latino displayed lower overall suicide mortality in all patients (aHRs: 0.426, 95% CI: 0.323-0.561). In the subgroup analysis of different ages, individuals with MHI over $75,000 had a lower risk of suicide than those with MHI between $54,999 and $74,999 in patients 60 to 79 years (aHRs: 0.668, 95% CI: 0.562-0.794) and individuals with MHI below $54,999 had higher suicide risk than those with MHI between $54,999 and $74,999 in patients 80+ years (aHRs: 1.786, 95% CI: 1.100-2.902). Hispanic-Latino individuals had lower overall suicide mortality in 00 to 59 years (aHRs: 0.420, 95% CI: 0.240-0.734), 60 to 79 years (aHRs: 0.445, 95% CI: 0.319-0.621), 80+ years (aHRs: 0.363, 95% CI: 0.133-0.988).

CONCLUSION

Socioeconomic disparities, including MHI and ethnicity, are important factors strongly related to suicide risk in prostate cancer patients. The lower MHI individuals and non-Spanish-Hispanic-Latino individuals were associated with higher suicide risk.

Disparities in Primary Spinal Osseous Malignant Bone Tumor Survival by Medicaid Status: A National Population-Based Risk Analysis

BACKGROUND

The impact of Medicaid status on survival outcomes of patients with spinal primary malignant bone tumors (sPMBT) has not been investigated.

METHODS

Using the SEER-Medicaid database, adults diagnosed between 2006 and 2013 with sPMBT including chordoma, osteosarcoma, chondrosarcoma, Ewing sarcoma, or malignant giant cell tumor (GCT) were studied. Five-year survival analysis was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method. Adjusted survival analysis was performed using Cox proportional-hazards regression controlling for age, sex, marital status, cancer stage, poverty level, vertebral versus sacral location, geography, rurality, tumor diameter, tumor grade, tumor histology, and therapy.

RESULTS

A total of 572 patients with sPMBT (Medicaid: 59, non-Medicaid: 513) were identified. Medicaid patients were more likely to be younger (P < 0.001), Black (P < 0.001), live in high poverty neighborhoods (P = 0.006), have distant metastases at diagnosis (P < 0.001), and less likely to receive surgery (P = 0.006). The 5-year survival rate was 65.7% (chondrosarcoma: 70.0%, chordoma: 91.5%, Ewing sarcoma: 44.6%, GCT: 90.0%, osteosarcoma: 34.2%). Medicaid patients had significantly worse 5-year survival than non-Medicaid patients (52.0% vs. 67.2%, P = 0.02). Minority individuals on Medicaid were associated with an increased risk of cancer-specific mortality compared with White non-Medicaid patients (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] = 2.51, [95% CI 1.18-5.35], P = 0.017). Among Medicaid patients, those who received surgery had significantly better survival than those who did not (64.5% vs. 30.6%, P = 0.001). For all patients, not receiving surgery (aHR = 1.90 [1.23-2.95], P = 0.004) and tumor diameter >50 mm (aHR=1.89 [1.10-3.25], P = 0.023) were associated with an increased risk of mortality.

CONCLUSIONS

Medicaid patients may be less likely to receive surgery and suffer from poorer survival. These disparities may be especially prominent among minorities.

Suicide among Cancer Patients: Current Knowledge and Directions for Observational Research

Cancer is a major public health concern associated with an increased risk of psychosocial distress and suicide. The reasons for this increased risk are still being characterized. The purpose of this study is to highlight existing observational studies on cancer-related suicides in the United States and identify gaps for future research. This work helps inform clinical and policy decision-making on suicide prevention interventions and ongoing research on the detection and quantification of suicide risk among cancer patients. We identified 73 peer-reviewed studies (2010-2022) that examined the intersection of cancer and suicide using searches of PubMed and Embase. Overall, the reviewed studies showed that cancer patients have an elevated risk of suicide when compared to the general population. In general, the risk was higher among White, male, and older cancer patients, as well as among patients living in rural areas and with lower socioeconomic status. Future studies should further investigate the psychosocial aspects of receiving a diagnosis of cancer on patients' mental health as well as the impact of new treatments and their availability on suicide risk and disparities among cancer patients to better inform policies.

Disparities in primary pancreatic adenocarcinoma survival by Medicaid-status: A national population-based risk analysis

BACKGROUND

Pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAC) has one of the highest mortality rates among all malignancies. While previous research has analyzed socioeconomic factors' effect on PAC survival, outcomes of Medicaid patients are understudied.

METHODS

Using the SEER-Medicaid database, we studied non-elderly, adult patients with primary PAC diagnosed between 2006 and 2013. Five-year disease-specific survival analysis was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method and adjusted analysis using Cox proportional-hazards regression.

RESULTS

Among 15,549 patients (1799 Medicaid, 13,750 non-Medicaid), Medicaid patients were less likely to receive surgery (p < .001) and more likely to be non-White (p < .001). The 5-year survival of non-Medicaid patients (8.13%, 274 days [270-280]) was significantly higher than that of Medicaid patients (4.97%, 152 days, [151-182], p < .001). Among Medicaid patients, those in high poverty areas had significantly lower survival rates (152 days [122-154]) than those in medium poverty areas (182 days [157-213], p = .008). However, non-White (152 days [150-182]) and White Medicaid patients (152 days [150-182]) had similar survival (p = .812). On adjusted analysis, Medicaid patients were still associated with a significantly higher risk of mortality (aHR 1.33 [1.26-1.41], p < .0001) compared to non-Medicaid patients. Unmarried status and rurality were associated with a higher risk of mortality (p < .001).

DISCUSSION

Medicaid enrollment prior to PAC diagnosis was generally associated with a higher risk of disease-specific mortality. While there was no difference in the survival between White and non-White Medicaid patients, Medicaid patients living in high poverty areas were shown to be associated with poor survival.

Disparities in hepatocellular carcinoma survival by Medicaid-status: A national population-based risk analysis

BACKGROUND

Previous studies have demonstrated disparities in survival surrounding hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) across a variety of socio-demographic factors; however, the relationship between Medicaid-status and HCC survival is poorly understood.

METHODS

We constructed 5-year, disease-specific survival curves using the Kaplan-Meier method and performed an adjusted survival analysis using multivariate Cox-proportional hazard regression.

RESULTS

We analyzed 17,059 non-elderly patients (12,194 non-Medicaid, 4875 Medicaid) diagnosed between 2006 and 2013 and found that Medicaid status was not associated with higher risk of diseases-specific death compared to other insurance types (p = .232, aHR 1.02, 95% CI: 0.983-1.07) after for controlling for a variety of co-variates (ie. marital status, urbanicity, etc.). We found no difference in the risk of death between patients enrolled in Medicaid for more than three years versus those enrolled for less than three years. In all models, rurality and unmarried status were also associated with an increased risk of death (aHR 1.11, 95% CI: 1.03-1.18, p = .002 and aHR 1.18, 95% CI: 1.13-1.23, p < .001, respectively).

DISCUSSION

Those enrolled in Medicaid prior to HCC diagnosis may not be associated with a higher risk of disease-specific death compared to non-Medicaid enrolled patients.

The significance of cognitive-behavioral therapy on suicide: An umbrella review

BACKGROUND

Suicide becomes a widespread public health concern. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is used to correct negative thoughts and behaviors of patients at risk of suicide. The aim of this research is to summarize and evaluate the existing evidence to explore the impact of CBT on suicide.

METHOD

We conducted a systematic searched in PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane database from the first available year to March 2021. The methodological quality was evaluated by AMSTAR-2 tool, and the evidence quality was evaluated by GRADE classification. We summarized all the comparative effects of CBT on suicide, and used forest plots to describe the impact of CBT on suicide related outcomes included suicidal ideation, suicide attempts. The random effects model was used to summarize data.

RESULTS

Nine systematic reviews and meta-analysis were included. Most of the systematic reviews and meta-analysis were of medium methodological and evidence quality. The impact of CBT on suicide outcomes could be divided into the following two categories: CBT reduced levels of suicidal ideation (SMD -0.28, 95 % CI -0.36 to -0.21), CBT relieved suicide attempts (RR 0.77, 95 % CI 0.69 to 0.87).

CONCLUSION

Based on the current evidence, CBT could relieve suicide, including suicide ideation, suicide attempts. CBT is scalable and cost-effective. It is helpful for health professionals to formulate personalized CBT programs, promote clinical and community applications and integrate them into comprehensive suicide interventions and prevention strategies.

Incidence of suicide mortality among childhood cancer survivors: A population-based retrospective study

The aim of our study was to investigate the suicide rates among childhood cancer survivors and assess factors associated with higher suicide risk. A review of data from Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program from 1975 to 2016 was performed for this study. This program is based on the US population and is supported by the US National Cancer Institute (NCI). Survivors diagnosed with childhood cancer were recorded. There were 40 suicides among 567,233 person-years, giving a suicide rate of 7.1 per 100,000 person-years. Compared with cancer diagnosed between 10 and 14 years old, survivors with cancer diagnosed between 0 and 4 years old had lower suicide risk. Females had a lower risk of suicide than males. Compared with survivors of thyroid cancer, the aHRs were 0.16 for acute lymphocytic leukemia, 0.15 for nodal Hodgkin's lymphoma, 0.14 for brain cancers and 0.09 for kidney cancers. Most suicides occurred after 15 years old. Suicide was a problem for survivors, especially those with thyroid cancer. Beside treating patients holistically, early psychological interventions such as communicating effectively, providing social support and follow-up care related to psychological health are needed.

Risk factors for suicide mortality and cancer-specific mortality among patients with gastric adenocarcinoma: A SEER based study

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to investigate the risk factors for suicide in patients with gastric adenocarcinoma (GAC) to recognize patients at higher risk who require special mental health care.

METHODS

Patients' data were collected from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database from 1975 to 2016. The relationships among categorical variables were assessed using Person's chi-square test. Standardized mortality ratio was used to compare ratios of suicide and other causes of death between the US population and adenocarcinoma patients. Cox regression and Kaplan-Meier were used for multivariate and univariate analyses. The probability of suicide was assessed using the binary regression analysis. All analyses were conducted using SPSS software.

RESULTS

Among 59,580 patients included in this study, 86 died due to suicide. The mean survival months was higher in patients <50 years (81.759) than in patients ≥50 years (42.961), and in females (49.116) than in males (44.591). The multivariate analysis showed a higher suicide mortality risk in divorced patients (HR = 2.461; 95% CI [1.015, 5.966], p = 0.046), patients not recommended for surgery (HR = 1.997; 95% CI [1.08, 3.694], p = 0.027) and patients with distant stage of the disease (HR = 2.68; 95% CI [1.395, 5.147], p = 0.003). Females had a lower suicide mortality risk (HR = 0.124; 95% CI [0.045, 0.314], p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

GAS predisposes to suicide. The risk is higher in patients who are males, divorced, not recommended for surgery, or have a distant spread of the disease.