Page 32 - Deleware Medical Journal - September/October 2019

important prognostic factor in long-term survival studies.3,4 The median age of patients in this study was slightly older than the median age of 65 seen in other studies and in the Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States (CBTRUS) data.1,5 Patients under the age of 65 made up 41% of the cases and survived 317 more days than those who were over the age of 65 years, who made up a majority of the cases.
Not all patients underwent surgery as their initial intervention. Patients who underwent biopsy alone — with the exception of a small percentage of cases — underwent
no further treatment and survival was 83 days compared to those who underwent any form of tumor resection. Eighty-four percent of patients in our study underwent debulking surgery, compared to 62% as seen in Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program data on
patients diagnosed 2005-2008.5 One third
of patients, compared with 24%, did not undergo any form of chemoradiation. In a long-term survivor study by Gately et al. in 2017, patients undergoing chemoradiation survived six more months than those who had radiation alone or no additional treatment after surgery.3 With a third of patients not undergoing any form of chemoradiation, this has a direct correlation on the overall survival time of 344 days (~11.4 months) seen in our study. The survival time is slightly lower than the average of 12.1 months for those treated without adjuvant temozolomide in the Stupp study.6
Critical factors associated with median overall survival in a community-based cancer center, such as patient age, are similar to those seen in other studies. In comparison, multi-institutional studies have inclusion and exclusion criteria as opposed to our
community-based cancer center, which evaluated all comers over the age of
18. Important factors that contribute to patient survival were not available for
all patients, such as patient functional status at the time of treatment, time from diagnosis to treatment, or completion of chemoradiation.
The primary limitations of this study are those inherent to retrospective analysis. Data collection and chart review are based on the accuracy of the written documentation provided at the time of patient evaluation.

institutional experience for the treatment of GBM statewide. Survival irrespective of treatment is still poor and requires continued translational research progress in this disease site.
We’re always here.
Helping to supplement your care while improving quality of life.
Our care helps alleviate symptoms, relieve anxiety and gives families confidence. We work around the clock
to support patients coping with serious illness in the home and reduce hospital readmissions.
delawarehospice.org 800.838.9800
224
Del Med J | September/October 2019 | Vol. 91 | No. 5