Chemotherapy overused for young, middle-aged adults with colon cancer, no improvement in survival rate: 4 key notes

A study in JAMA Surgery examined the use and effectiveness of chemotherapy in a range of colon cancer patients.

Researchers examined 3,413 patients, from the U.S. Department of Defense Central Cancer Registry and Military Health System's medical claims database, who underwent surgery and postoperative systemic chemotherapy.

The researchers compared the survival rate of patients who received surgery and those who received both surgery and chemotherapy.

Here's what they found.

1. Young patients — 18- to 49-years-old — were two to eight times more likely to receive postoperative systemic chemotherapy compared to 65- to 75-year-old patients across all tumor stages.

2. Middle-aged patients with stage I and stage II cancer were more likely to receive postoperative chemotherapy when compared to older patients.

3. Both young and middle-aged patients were more likely to receive multiagent chemotherapy than older patients.

4. There was no significant difference in survival rate among age groups for patients receiving surgery and postoperative systemic chemotherapy.

The researchers concluded, "In an equal-access health care system, we found potential overuse of chemotherapy among young and middle-aged adults with colon cancer. The addition of postoperative systemic chemotherapy did not result in matched survival improvement."

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