OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of hospital volume on long-term survival for women with breast cancer. METHODS: Survival analysis and proportional-hazard modeling were used to assess 5-year survival and risk of death, adjusting for clinical and sociodemographic variables. RESULTS: At 5 years, patients from very low-volume hospitals had a 60% greater risk of all-cause mortality than patients from high-volume hospitals. CONCLUSIONS: Hospital volume of breast cancer surgical cases has a strong positive effect on 5-year survival. Research is needed to identify whether processes of care, especially postsurgical adjuvant treatments, contribute to survival differences.

Background Little is known about the care that adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients receive at the end-of-life (EOL). Objective To evaluate use of intensive measures and hospice and location of death of AYA cancer patients insured by Medicaid in New York State. Design Using linked patient-level data from the New York state cancer registry and state Medicaid program, we identified 705 Medicaid patients who were diagnosed with cancer between the ages of 15 and 29 in the years 2004–2011, who subsequently died, and who were continuously enrolled in Medicaid in the last 60 days of life. We evaluated use of intensive EOL measures (chemotherapy within 14 days of death; intensive care unit care, >1 emergency room visit, and hospitalizations in the last 30 days of life), hospice use, and location of death (inpatient hospice, long-term care facility, acute care facility, home with hospice, home without hospice). Results 75% of AYA Medicaid decedents used at least one aspect of intensive EOL care. 38% received chemotherapy in the last 2 weeks of life; 21% received intensive care unit care, 44% had >1 emergency room visit, and 64% were hospitalized in the last month of life. Only 23% used hospice. 65% of patients died in acute care settings, including the inpatient hospital or emergency room. Conclusions Given high rates of intensive measures and low utilization of hospice at the EOL among AYA Medicaid enrollees, opportunities to maximize the quality of EOL care in this high risk group should be prioritized.

The importance of these findings lies in the rather striking difference between the volume-outcome relationship found for operations for abdominal aortic aneurysms and congenital cardiac defects and the lack of such a relationship for coronary artery bypass grafting. This observation may be largely explained by the quality improvement program in New York State for bypass operations since 1989. If so, these results have important implications for expanding the scope of quality improvement efforts in New York State.

Purpose Medicare patients with advanced cancer have low rates of hospice use. We sought to evaluate hospice use among patients in Medicaid, which insures younger and indigent patients, relative to those in Medicare. Patients and Methods Using linked patient-level data from California (CA) and New York (NY) state cancer registries, state Medicaid programs, NY Medicare, and CA Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results–Medicare data, we identified 4,797 CA Medicaid patients and 4,001 NY Medicaid patients ages 21 to 64 years, as well as 27,416 CA Medicare patients and 16,496 NY Medicare patients ages ≥ 65 years who were diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer between 2002 and 2006. We evaluated hospice use, timing of enrollment, and location of death (inpatient hospice; long-term care facility or skilled nursing facility; acute care facility; home with hospice; or home without hospice). We used multiple logistic regressions to evaluate clinical and sociodemographic factors associated with hospice use. Results Although 53% (CA) and 44% (NY) of Medicare patients ages ≥ 65 years used hospice, fewer than one third of Medicaid-insured patients ages 21 to 64 years enrolled in hospice after a diagnosis of stage IV lung cancer (CA, 32%; NY, 24%). A minority of Medicaid patient deaths (CA, 19%; NY, 14%) occurred at home with hospice. Most Medicaid patient deaths were either in acute-care facilities (CA, 28%; NY, 36%) or at home without hospice (CA, 39%; NY, 41%). Patient race/ethnicity was not associated with hospice use among Medicaid patients. Conclusion Given low rates of hospice use among Medicaid enrollees and considerable evidence of suffering at the end of life, opportunities to improve palliative care delivery should be prioritized.