Non-small Cell Lung Cancer Treatment Receipt and Survival Among African-Americans and Whites in a Rural Area

Data on racial disparities among lung cancer patients in rural areas are scarce. We examined differences in treatment receipt and survival among African-American (AA) and Non-Hispanic White (NHW) non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients residing in Southwest Georgia (SWGA)—a primarily rural 33-county area; population 700,000. Medical records for 934 SWGA NSCLC patients diagnosed in 2001–2003 were used to extract information on age, race, marital status, insurance coverage, comorbidities, and treatment. Information pertaining to socioeconomic status, urban/rural residence, and survival was obtained from the cancer registry. Multivariable logistic regression analyses examined the relation of various patient and disease characteristics to receipt of tumor-directed therapy. Cox regression models were used to assess determinants of survival. Treatment receipt was associated with age, marital status, comorbidities, and disease stage in most analyses. No associations were observed between race and either surgery odds ratio (OR) 0.83, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 0.49–1.39] or radiation (OR 0.72; 95 % CI 0.52–1.00). NHW patients were more likely to receive no treatment at all (OR 1.50, 95 % CI 1.01–2.23). There was no racial difference in survival (hazard ratio = 1.07, 95 % CI 0.90–1.26). Effects of insurance and treatment on survival were most pronounced within 6 months post-diagnosis, but were attenuated over time. We found no evidence of racial disparities in survival and, in some analyses, a decreased likelihood of treatment receipt among NHW NSCLC patients compared to AA. The results from SWGA stand in contrast to studies that applied different methodologies and were conducted elsewhere.