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Introduction Lung cancer diagnostic and treatment delays have been described for several patient populations. However, few studies have analyzed these intervals among patients treated in contemporary health care systems in the United States. We therefore studied the timing of lung cancer diagnosis and treatment at a U.S. medical center providing care to a diverse patient population within two different hospital systems. Methods We performed a retrospective analysis of consecutive patients diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer stages I–III from 2000 to 2005 at public and private hospitals affiliated with the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. We recorded patient and disease characteristics; dates of initial radiograph suspicious for lung cancer, diagnosis, and treatment; and overall survival. Associations between these factors were assessed using univariate analysis, multivariate logistic regression, and Kaplan-Meier survival analysis. Results A total of 482 patients met criteria for analysis. In univariate analyses, the image-treatment interval was significantly associated with race, age, income, insurance type, and hospital type (76 days for public versus 45 days for private; P<0.0001). In multivariate analysis, only hospital type remained significantly associated with the image-treatment interval; patients in the private hospital setting were more likely to receive timely treatment (HR 1.85; 95% CI, 1.37–2.50; P<0.001). In univariate analysis, the image-treatment interval was not associated with disease stage (P=0.27) or with survival (P=0.42). Conclusion Intervals between suspicion, diagnosis, and treatment of lung cancer vary widely among patients. Health care system factors, such as hospital type, largely account for these discrepancies. In this study, these intervals do not appear associated with clinical outcomes.

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KRAS mutations occur frequently in colorectal cancers (CRC) and predict lack of response to anti-epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) monoclonal antibody therapy. CRC BRAF mutations, most commonly at V600E, occur less than 10% of the time, and occur usually in KRAS wild-type tumors, and more frequently in microsatellite instable tumors. Concomitant KRAS and BRAF mutant CRCs are rare (occurring in 0.001%); BRAF mutations should not be routinely tested in patients with KRAS mutant tumors, unless the patients is participating in a clinical trial enriching for the presence of a KRAS or BRAF tumor. Clinical trials treating patients with either KRAS or BRAF mutant tumors should address eligibility of patients with concomitant KRAS and BRAF mutations.

Background Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) presentation, treatment, and outcomes vary widely according to socioeconomic factors and other patient characteristics. To determine whether medical comorbidities account for these observations, we incorporated a validated medical comorbidity index into an analysis of patients diagnosed with stage I–III NSCLC. Patients and Methods We performed a retrospective analysis of consecutive patients diagnosed with stage I–III NSCLC. Demographic, tumor, and comorbidity data were obtained from hospital tumor registries and individual patient records. The association between variables was assessed through multivariate logistic regression and survival analysis. Results A total of 454 patients met criteria for analysis. Median age was 65 years, and 51% were men. Individuals with a higher Charlson Comorbidity Index (CCI) were significantly more likely to present with early stage (stage I–II) NSCLC than were patients with lower CCI (OR 1.72; 95% CI, 1.14 to 2.63; P=0.01), although this association lost statistical significance (P=0.21) in a multivariate model. In multivariate logistic regression, overall survival remained associated with all variables: age, gender, race, insurance type, stage, histology, and CCI (P=0.0007). The CCI was associated with survival for patients with both early stage (P=0.02) and locally advanced (P=0.02) disease. Conclusions In this cohort of patients with stage I–III NSCLC, increasing comorbidity burden had a non-significant association with diagnosis at earlier disease stage. Although comorbidity burden was significantly associated with outcome for both early stage and locally advanced disease, it did not account for survival differences based on multiple other patient and disease characteristics.