| Abstract: |
OBJECTIVE: • To identify treatment patterns and predictors of receiving multimodality therapy in patients with locally advanced prostate cancer (LAPC). PATIENTS AND METHODS: • The cohort comprised patients ≥66 years with clinical stage T3 or T4 non-metastatic prostate cancer diagnosed between 1998 and 2005 identified from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) cancer registry records linked with Medicare claims. • Treatments were classified as radical prostatectomy (RP), radiation therapy (RT) and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) received within 6 and 24 months of diagnosis. • We assessed trends over time and used multivariable logistic regression to identify predictors of multimodality treatment. RESULTS: • Within the first 6 months of diagnosis, 1060 of 3095 patients (34%) were treated with a combination of RT and ADT, 1486 (48%) received monotherapy (RT alone, ADT alone or RP alone), and 461 (15%) received no active treatment. • The proportion of patients who received RP increased, exceeding 10% in 2005. • Use of combined RT and ADT and use of ADT alone fluctuated throughout the study period. • In all 6% of patients received RT alone in 2005. • Multimodality therapy was less common in patients who were older, African American, unmarried, who lived in the south, and who had co-morbidities or stage T4 disease. CONCLUSIONS: • Treatment of LAPC varies widely, and treatment patterns shifted during the study period. • The slightly increased use of multimodality therapy since 2003 is encouraging, but further work is needed to increase combination therapy in appropriate patients and to define the role of RP. © 2011 The Authors BJU International © 2011 BJU International. |
