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Background: Black and Hispanic women with early-stage breast cancer are more likely than white women to experience fragmented care and less likely to see medical oncologists to get effective adjuvant treatment. We implemented a tracking and feedback registry to close the referral loop between surgeons and oncologists. Methods: We compared completed oncology consultations and use of adjuvant treatment among a group of 639 women with newly diagnosed stage I or II breast cancer who had undergone surgery at one of six New York City hospitals from 1999 to 2000 with the same outcomes for a different group of 300 women with breast cancer whose surgeries occurred in 2004-2006, after the implementation of the tracking registry. Underuse of adjuvant treatment was defined as no radiotherapy after breast-conserving surgery, no chemotherapy for estrogen receptor (ER)-negative tumors, or no hormonal therapy for ER-positive tumors 1 cm or larger. We used hierarchical modeling to adjust for clustering within hospital and surgeon practice. Odds ratios were converted to adjusted relative risks (aRRs). All statistical tests were two-sided. Results: Implementation of the tracking and feedback registry was accompanied by a statistically significant increase in oncology consultations (83% before vs 97% after the intervention; difference = 14%; 95% confidence interval [Cl] = 11% to 18%; P < .001) and decrease in underuse of adjuvant treatment (23% before vs 14% after the intervention; difference = -9%, 95% Cl = -12% to -6%; P < .001). Underuse declined from 34% to 14% among black women, from 23% to 13% among Hispanic women, and from 17% to 14% among white women (chi-square of change in underuse from before to after among the three racial groups; P = .001). In multivariable models adjusting for clustering by hospital and surgeon, the intervention was associated with increased rates of oncology consultation (aRR = 1.6, 95% Cl = 1.3 to 1.8), and reduced underuse of adjuvant treatment (aRR = 0.75, 95% Cl = 0.6 to 0.9). Compared with the preintervention findings, minority race was no longer a risk factor for low rates of oncology consultation (aRR = 1.0, 95% Cl = 0.7 to 1.3) or for underuse of adjuvant therapy (aRR = 1.0, 95% Cl = 0.8 to 1.3). Conclusions: A tracking and feedback registry that enhances completed oncology consultations between surgeons and oncologists also appears to reduce rates of adjuvant treatment underuse and to eliminate the racial disparity in treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Oncotype DX, a 21-gene-array analysis, can guide chemotherapy treatment decisions for women with ER+ tumors. Of 225 ER+ women participating in a patient assistance trial, 23% underwent Oncotype DX testing: 31% of whites, 21% of blacks, and 14% of Hispanics (P = 0.04) were tested. Only 3 white women were treated at municipal hospitals and none was tested. 3% of women treated inmunicipal hospital as compared to 30%treated at tertiary referral centers were tested (P = 0.001).Within tertiary referral centers, there was no racial difference in testing: 32%ofwhites, 29% of blacks, and 19% ofHispanics (P = 0.25).Multivariate analysis (model c-statistic = 0.76; P < 0.0001) revealed that women who underwent testing were more likely to have stage 1B (RR = 1.70; 95% CI: 1.45-1.85) and to be treated after 2007 (RR = 1.34; 95% CI: 1.01-1.65) and less likely to be treated at a municipal hospital (RR = 0.20; 95% CI: 0.04-0.94).Women treated at municipal hospitals were less likely to undergo testing resulting in a misleading racial disparity that is driven by site of care. As Oncotype DX can reduce overuse of chemotherapy, it is imperative to expand testing to those who could benefit from yet experience underuse of this test, namely, women treated at safety net hospitals. This trial is registered with NCT00233077. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]