AstraZeneca.

Background Preclinical studies show that opioids stimulate angiogenesis and tumor progression through the mu opioid receptor (MOR). Although MOR is over-expressed in several human malignancies, the effect of chronic opioid requirement on cancer progression or survival has not been examined in humans. Methods We performed a retrospective analysis on 113 patients identified in the Minneapolis VA Tumor Registry (test cohort) and 480 patients from the national VA Central Cancer Registry (validation cohort) diagnosed with stage IV prostate cancer between 1995 and 2010, to examine whether MOR expression or opioid requirement is associated with disease progression and survival. All opioids were converted to oral morphine equivalents (OME) for comparison. Laser scanning confocal microscopy was used to analyze MOR-immunoreactivity in prostate cancer biopsies. The effects of variables on outcomes were analyzed in univariable and multivariable models. Results In patients with metastatic prostate cancer, MOR expression and opioid requirement were independently associated with inferior progression-free survival (PFS) (HR 1.65, 1.33–2.07; p<0.001 and HR 1.08, 1.03–1.13; p<0.001, respectively) and overall survival (OS; HR 1.55, 1.20–1.99; p<0.001 and HR 1.05, 1.00–1.10; p=0.031, respectively). The validation cohort confirmed that increasing opioid requirement was associated with worse OS (HR 1.005, 1.002–1.008, p=0.001). Conclusion Higher MOR expression and greater opioid requirement are associated with shorter PFS and OS in patients with metastatic prostate cancer. Nevertheless, clinical practice should not be changed until prospective randomized trials show that opioid use is associated with inferior clinical outcomes, and that abrogation of the peripheral activities of opioids ameliorates this effect.

American College of Physicians.

IMPORTANCE Electronic systems that facilitate patient-reported outcome (PRO) surveys for patients with cancer may detect symptoms early and prompt clinicians to intervene. OBJECTIVE To evaluate whether electronic symptom monitoring during cancer treatment confers benefits on quality-of-life outcomes. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Report of secondary outcomes from the PRO-TECT (Alliance AFT-39) cluster randomized trial in 52 US community oncology practices randomized to electronic symptom monitoring with PRO surveys or usual care. Between October 2017 and March 2020, 1191 adults being treated for metastatic cancer were enrolled, with last follow-up on May 17, 2021. INTERVENTIONSIn the PRO group, participants (n = 593) were asked to complete weekly surveys via an internet-based or automated telephone system for up to 1 year. Severe or worsening symptoms triggered care team alerts. The control group (n = 598) received usual care. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURESThe 3 prespecified secondary outcomes were physical function, symptom control, and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) at 3 months, measured by the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ-C30; range, 0-100 points; minimum clinically important difference [MCID], 2-7 for physical function; no MCID defined for symptom control or HRQOL). Results on the primary outcome, overall survival, are not yet available. RESULTS Among 52 practices, 1191 patients were included (mean age, 62.2 years; 694 [58.3%] women); 1066 (89.5%) completed 3-month follow-up. Compared with usual care, mean changes on the QLQ-C30 from baseline to 3 months were significantly improved in the PRO group for physical function (PRO, from 74.27 to 75.81 points; control, from 73.54 to 72.61 points; mean difference, 2.47 [95% CI,]; P = .02), symptom control (PRO, from 77.67 to 80.03 points; control, from 76.75 to 76.55 points; mean difference, 2.56 [95% CI, 0.95-4.17]; P = .002), and HRQOL (PRO, from 78.11 to 80.03 points; control, from 77.00 to 76.50 points; mean difference, 2.43 [95% CI, 0.90-3.96]; P = .002). Patients in the PRO group had significantly greater odds of experiencing clinically meaningful benefits vs usual care for physical function (7.7% more with improvements of Ն5 points and 6.1% fewer with worsening of Ն5 points; odds ratio [OR], 1.35 [95% CI, 1.08-1.70];