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Abstract Background Hysterectomy is a common surgery among reproductive-aged U.S. patients, with rates highest among Black patients in the South. There is limited insight on causes of these racial differences. In the U.S., electronic medical records (EMR) data can offer richer detail on factors driving surgical decision-making among reproductive-aged populations than insurance claims-based data. Our objective in this cohort profile paper is to describe the Carolina Hysterectomy Cohort (CHC), a large EMR-based case-series of premenopausal hysterectomy patients in the U.S. South, supplemented with census and surgeon licensing data. To demonstrate one strength of the data, we evaluate whether patient and surgeon characteristics differ by insurance payor type. Methods We used structured and abstracted EMR data to identify and characterize patients aged 18–44 years who received hysterectomies for non-cancerous conditions between 10/02/2014–12/31/2017 in a large health care system comprised of 10 hospitals in North Carolina. We used Chi-squared and Kruskal Wallis tests to compare whether patients’ socio-demographic and relevant clinical characteristics, and surgeon characteristics differed by patient insurance payor (public, private, uninsured). Results Of 1857 patients (including 55% non-Hispanic White, 30% non-Hispanic Black, 9% Hispanic), 75% were privately-insured, 17% were publicly-insured, and 7% were uninsured. Menorrhagia was more prevalent among the publicly-insured (74% vs 68% overall). Fibroids were more prevalent among the privately-insured (62%) and the uninsured (68%). Most privately insured patients were treated at non-academic hospitals (65%) whereas most publicly insured and uninsured patients were treated at academic centers (66 and 86%, respectively). Publicly insured and uninsured patients had higher median bleeding (public: 7.0, uninsured: 9.0, private: 5.0) and pain (public: 6.0, uninsured: 6.0, private: 3.0) symptom scores than the privately insured. There were no statistical differences in surgeon characteristics by payor groups. Conclusion This novel study design, a large EMR-based case series of hysterectomies linked to physician licensing data and manually abstracted data from unstructured clinical notes, enabled identification and characterization of a diverse reproductive-aged patient population more comprehensively than claims data would allow. In subsequent phases of this research, the CHC will leverage these rich clinical data to investigate multilevel drivers of hysterectomy in an ethnoracially, economically, and clinically diverse series of hysterectomy patients.

The objectives of this study were to describe the patterns and duration of primary and recurrent treatment in patients with ovarian cancer (OC) harboring germline BRCA1 and BRCA2 (BRCA) mutations. A retrospective review of BRCA mutation carriers with advanced, high-grade OC diagnosed between 2004 and 2014 with at least 3 years of follow-up (or until death) was undertaken. Descriptive statistics were calculated and a Swimmer's Plot used to depict disease course. Forty BRCA mutation carriers (26 BRCA1, 14 BRCA2) were identified. Mean age was 54 (range 32–77). All had cytoreductive surgery and received platinum chemotherapy. Median platinum-free interval was 11.9 months (IQR 3.6–21.9). Among 28 patients who recurred, median number of treatment lines was 4 (IQR 3–6), with a median of 2 (IQR 2–3) platinum lines. On average, patients who recurred spent 32% (IQR 20–43%) of their time after diagnosis receiving cytotoxic chemotherapy and 54% (IQR 42–67%) of the time on some cancer-directed therapy, including maintenance. Median overall survival was 79.1 months from diagnosis and 25.4 months after first recurrence. In conclusion, beyond first-line therapy, there was treatment and outcome heterogeneity for BRCA-mutated OC. After OC diagnosis, patients spent close to half their life on treatment. Keywords: Ovarian cancer, BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations, Disease course, Treatment, Long-term

Abstract Background Hysterectomy is among the most common surgeries performed on U.S. women. For benign conditions, minimally invasive hysterectomy is recommended, whenever permitted by clinical indication and previous surgery history. No study has examined whether the use of less invasive hysterectomy spread more slowly for Black women. Methods We used the hysterectomy that occurs in outpatient settings as a proxy for minimally invasive hysterectomy. Using claims-based surgery data and census denominators, we calculated age-standardized rates of all hysterectomies in North Carolina from 2011 to 2013. Study participants were 41,899 women (64.6% non-Hispanic White, 28.3% non-Hispanic Black) who underwent hysterectomy for non-malignant indications. We fit Poisson models to determine whether changes in outpatient hysterectomy rates differed by Black-White race. We employed a difference-in-difference approach to control for racial differences in the severity of clinical indication. Further, we restricted to one state to minimize confounding from geographic differences in where Black and White women live. Results From 2011 to 2013, the overall hysterectomy rate decreased from 42.3 per 10,000 women (n = 14,648) to 37.9 per 10,000 (n = 13,241) (p

Objective: The Lumbee Indian tribe is the largest Native American tribe in North Carolina, with about 55,000 enrolled members who mostly reside in southeastern counties. We evaluated whether Lumbee heritage is associated with high-risk histologic subtypes of endometrial cancer. Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the available records from IRB-approved endometrial cancer databases at two institutions of patients of Lumbee descent (year of diagnosis range 1980–2014). Each Lumbee case was matched by age, year of diagnosis, and BMI to two non-Lumbee controls. Chi-square test was used to compare categorical associations. Kaplan–Meier methods and log-rank test were used to display and compare disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS). Multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression was used to adjust for age and BMI while testing cohort as a predictor of DFS and OS. Results: Among 108 subjects, 10/35 (29%) Lumbee and 19/72 (26%) non-Lumbee subjects had high-risk (serous/clear cell/carcinosarcoma) histologic types (p = 0.8). 12/35 (34%) Lumbee and 24/72 (33%) non-Lumbee subjects had grade 3 tumors (p = 0.9). 5/33 (15%) Lumbee and 13/72 (18%) non-Lumbee had advanced stage endometrial cancer at diagnosis (p = 0.7). Lumbee ancestry was not associated with worse survival outcomes. OS (p = 0.054) and DFS (p = 0.01) were both worse in Blacks compared to Lumbee and White subjects. Conclusion: In this retrospective cohort analysis, Lumbee Native American ancestry was not a significant independent predictor of rates of high-risk histological subtypes of endometrial cancer or poor survival outcomes.

Aim: Social isolation in cancer patients is correlated with prognosis and is a potential mediator of treatment completion. Black women with endometrial cancer (EC) are at increased risk for social isolation when compared with White patients. We developed the Social Interventions for Support during Treatment for Endometrial Cancer and Recurrence (SISTER) study to compare and evaluate interventions to address social isolation among Black women with high-risk EC in USA. The primary objective of the SISTER study is to determine whether virtual support interventions improve treatment completion compared with Enhanced Usual Care. Secondary objectives include comparing effectiveness virtual evidence-based interventions and evaluating barriers and facilitators to social support delivery. Patients & methods: This is a multi-site prospective, open-label, community-engaged randomized controlled trial, consisting of three intervention arms: enhanced usual care, facilitated support group and one-to-one peer support. Primary outcome will be measured using relative dose. Qualitative semi-structured interviews will be conducted with a subset of participants to contextualize the relative degree or lack thereof of social isolation, over time. Data analysis: Primary analysis will be based on an intent-to-treat analysis. Multivariable analysis will be performed to determine the effect of the intervention on the primary and secondary outcomes of interest, relative dose and social isolation score. Semi-structured interviews will be qualitatively analyzed using inductive and deductive approaches of content analysis. Discussion/conclusion: Endometrial cancer mortality disproportionately affects Black women, and social isolation contributes to this disparity. The SISTER study aims to identify whether and to what extent differing social support vehicles improve key outcomes for Black women in the United States with high-risk EC.

Importance: Despite the growing literature on the association of functional, physical, and quality-of-life (QOL) deficits with poor postoperative outcomes, there is a gap in the literature identifying women's occupational performance needs after ovarian cancer surgery., Objective: To describe the experiences of women hospitalized after ovarian cancer surgery to identify potential areas for intervention. Goals were to (1) identify functional needs and limitations at time of discharge as measured by the typical acute care occupational therapy evaluation and semistructured interview and (2) understand the women's perspectives of their needs for occupational therapy and a safe return to home., Design: Single-arm, cross-sectional descriptive study. Mixed-methods data collection and analysis., Setting: Academic cancer center., Participants: Women with ovarian cancer (N = 11) who had completed surgery., Intervention: Semistructured interviews and patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) completed postsurgery., Outcomes and Measures: PROMs included the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Distress Thermometer and Problem List, the PROMIS ® Global Physical Health (GPH) and Global Mental Health (GMH) scales, and the Possibilities for Activity Scale-Women (PActS-W)., Results: The mean NCCN Distress score was 6.0 (standard deviation [SD] = 3.1, with the top three concerns being pain (80%), worry (80%), and fatigue (78%). Mean GPH and GMH T scores were 38.0 (SD = 8.8) and 48.2 (SD = 8.4), respectively. Women scored a mean of 39.2 (SD = 11.2, range = 26-58) on the PActS-W. Thematic analyses found that the women were uncertain about potential functional limitations and significantly distressed., Conclusion and Relevance: Women with ovarian cancer experienced high levels of uncertainty and distress after surgery. Integrating in-home or community-based occupational therapy into routine care could decrease functional distress and uncertainty and help women manage concerns related to pain, worry, and fatigue., What This Article Adds: This study suggests that occupational therapy evaluation and intervention are needed to decrease distress and improve QOL of women upon discharge after ovarian cancer surgery., (Copyright © 2020 by the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.)