University of California Researcher Describes New Findings in Ovarian Cancer (Spatial-Temporal Trends in Ovarian Cancer Outcomes in California): Oncology – Ovarian Cancer

Health Policy and Law Daily

2022 NOV 01 (NewsRx) -- By a News Reporter-Staff News Editor at Health Policy and Law Daily -- Current study results on ovarian cancer have been published. According to news originating from Irvine, California, by NewsRx correspondents, research stated, “Research suggests that geographic location may impact ovarian cancer (OC) outcomes. Insurance status often remains an important predictor of outcomes.”

Our news journalists obtained a quote from the research from University of California: “The Affordable Care Act was enacted in 2010 to expand access to affordable health insurance. Our objective was to examine spatiotemporal trends in OC treatment non-adherence and disease-specific mortality in California (USA) among women diagnosed with OC. Newly diagnosed epithelial OC cases between 1996-2017 were identified from the California Cancer Registry. Spatiotemporal trends in adherence to treatment guidelines were examined using generalized additive models and OC-specific mortality using Cox proportional hazards additive models. Prediction grids covering California were used to display the odds ratios (ORs) and hazards ratios (HRs) of location, using the median value for the study area as the referent value. Seven overlapping 5-year time periods and two larger ones (pre- and post-2013) were assessed. Analyses were stratified according to stage (early versus advanced), and used P = 0.05 to determine statistical significance. Statistically significant spatial patterns in treatment non-adherence were observed for every time period examined (P < 0.001). Odds of treatment non-adherence associated with geographic location were highest among women with early-stage OC in southern Los Angeles County during 2014-2017 (OR max: 3.89, Confidence Interval: 1.04-7.61). For women with advanced-stage OC, residing in Northern California was generally associated with lower ORs, while Southern California was associated with higher ORs, with higher odds in the latter time period (OR range 0.53-1.84 in 1996-2012 vs 0.49-2.37 in 2013-2017). Geographic location was not a significant predictor of mortality.”

According to the news reporters, the research concluded: “Residential location was significantly associated with treatment received in California, with spatial patterns varying over time, but not OC-specific mortality. Changes in insurance status over time were accompanied by shifts in population demographics and increased travel distances to receive care.”

For more information on this research see: Spatial-Temporal Trends in Ovarian Cancer Outcomes in California. JNCI Cancer Spectrum, 2022. (JNCI Cancer Spectrum - https://academic.oup.com/jncics). The publisher for JNCI Cancer Spectrum is Oxford University Press (OUP).

A free version of this journal article is available at https://doi.org/10.1093/jncics/pkac067.

Our news editors report that additional information may be obtained by contacting Carolina Villanueva, Program in Public Health, Susan and Henry Samueli College of Health Sciences, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States. Additional authors for this research include Jenny Chang, Argyrios Ziogas, Robert E Bristow, Veronica M Vieira.