Association between socioeconomic status and colorectal cancer survival in patients participating in the PLCO cancer screening trial
Principal Investigator
Name
Laura Davis
Degrees
MSc
Institution
Independent
Position Title
PhD Student
Email
About this CDAS Project
Study
PLCO
(Learn more about this study)
Project ID
PLCO-714
Initial CDAS Request Approval
Jan 14, 2021
Title
Association between socioeconomic status and colorectal cancer survival in patients participating in the PLCO cancer screening trial
Summary
The data obtained for this project will be used as a learning experience in a PhD level flexible modelling class at the University of McGill. The results are not intended to be published and the data will only be analyzed by myself. The use of this data will help me become familiar with flexible time-to-event modelling techniques.
Differences in cancer care and outcomes resulting from a patient’s social, economic, and physical environment have been studied across the cancer care continuum from screening and diagnosis to treatment and end-of-life care. Because of these barriers, patients often fail to receive appropriate management, treatment or support for their disease. Education is an important socioeconomic factor in cancer outcomes and has been linked to cancer survival. Individual education might effect survival and other cancer outcomes through material and social resources, such as increased income to pay for peripheral costs of cancer care (e.g. parking, child care) or through lifestyle factors, for example those with low education might be more likely to smoke and therefore have shorter cancer survival. Colorectal cancer represents an important cancer for intervention on these barriers since nation-wide screening allows for early detection and thus early intervention.
The objective of the project will be to examine the association between socioeconomic status and survival in colorectal cancer patients participating in the PLCO cancer screening trial. We will examine the exposures of education and occupation separately. The outcome will be survival, measured as days from diagnosis to death. If sample size allows, we will also examine cancer-specific survival. Cox-proportional hazards regression models will be used to examine these associations adjusted for confounders. Confounders identified apriori include BMI, age, stage at diagnosis, smoking pack-years, and race. Additional covariates may be identified.
Differences in cancer care and outcomes resulting from a patient’s social, economic, and physical environment have been studied across the cancer care continuum from screening and diagnosis to treatment and end-of-life care. Because of these barriers, patients often fail to receive appropriate management, treatment or support for their disease. Education is an important socioeconomic factor in cancer outcomes and has been linked to cancer survival. Individual education might effect survival and other cancer outcomes through material and social resources, such as increased income to pay for peripheral costs of cancer care (e.g. parking, child care) or through lifestyle factors, for example those with low education might be more likely to smoke and therefore have shorter cancer survival. Colorectal cancer represents an important cancer for intervention on these barriers since nation-wide screening allows for early detection and thus early intervention.
The objective of the project will be to examine the association between socioeconomic status and survival in colorectal cancer patients participating in the PLCO cancer screening trial. We will examine the exposures of education and occupation separately. The outcome will be survival, measured as days from diagnosis to death. If sample size allows, we will also examine cancer-specific survival. Cox-proportional hazards regression models will be used to examine these associations adjusted for confounders. Confounders identified apriori include BMI, age, stage at diagnosis, smoking pack-years, and race. Additional covariates may be identified.
Aims
1. Determine SES predictors of overall survival
2. Determine SES predictors of cancer-specific survival
Collaborators
Laura E. Davis, McGill University
Note: This is a student project for a class therefore there are no collaborators.