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Annals of Surgical Oncology
Published in: Annals of Surgical Oncology 6/2019

01-06-2019 | Colon Cancer | Health Services Research and Global Oncology

Compliance with Cancer Quality Measures Over Time and Their Association with Survival Outcomes: The Commission on Cancer’s Experience with the Quality Measure Requiring at Least 12 Regional Lymph Nodes to be Removed and Analyzed with Colon Cancer Resections

Authors: Lawrence N. Shulman, MD, Amanda E. Browner, MS, Bryan E. Palis, MA, Katherine Mallin, PhD, Sumedh Kakade, MD, Ned Carp, MD, Ryan McCabe, PhD, David Winchester, MD, Sandra L. Wong, MD, MS, Daniel P. McKellar, MD

Published in: Annals of Surgical Oncology | Issue 6/2019

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Abstract

Background

Many quality measures in cancer care are process measures. The rates of compliance for these measures over time have not been well described, and the relationships between measure compliance and survival are not well understood.

Methods

The National Cancer Database, representing cancer registry data from approximately 1500 Commission on Cancer (CoC) cancer programs, was queried to determine the rates of compliance, with the CoC’s colon cancer quality measure requiring 12 regional lymph nodes be removed at resection. Data were assessed in 2003, before the measure was reported to programs, through 2015. Measure compliance and risk-adjusted survival were examined by hospital type.

Results

From 2003 to 2015, 544,018 cases of colon cancer were analyzed for number of nodes removed. In 2003, compliance was 52.8% and National Cancer Institute (NCI) centers had the highest compliance rate (69.0%), followed by academic cancer centers (61.9%), comprehensive community hospitals (50.9%), and community hospitals (44.0%). Between 2003 and 2015, compliance improved for all hospital types, although differences remained. Risk-adjusted survival in 2009 was better at NCI centers [hazard ratio (HR) 0.76] than at academic cancer centers (HR 0.90), which had better survivals than comprehensive community programs (HR 0.93) when compared with patients treated at community hospitals.

Conclusion

After introduction of this quality measure, performance at CoC-accredited hospitals improved over the subsequent 13 years, and survival by hospital type paralleled measure compliance by hospital type. This demonstrated measurement may be associated with improvements in performance, and that there are differences in performance and outcome by hospital type.
Appendix
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Metadata
Title
Compliance with Cancer Quality Measures Over Time and Their Association with Survival Outcomes: The Commission on Cancer’s Experience with the Quality Measure Requiring at Least 12 Regional Lymph Nodes to be Removed and Analyzed with Colon Cancer Resections
Authors
Lawrence N. Shulman, MD
Amanda E. Browner, MS
Bryan E. Palis, MA
Katherine Mallin, PhD
Sumedh Kakade, MD
Ned Carp, MD
Ryan McCabe, PhD
David Winchester, MD
Sandra L. Wong, MD, MS
Daniel P. McKellar, MD
Publication date
01-06-2019
Publisher
Springer International Publishing
Published in
Annals of Surgical Oncology / Issue 6/2019
Print ISSN: 1068-9265
Electronic ISSN: 1534-4681
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1245/s10434-019-07323-w

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