Appropriateness of cardiovascular care in elderly adult cancer survivors

Research suggests that the quality of non-cancer-related care among cancer survivors (CS) is suboptimal. Secondary disease prevention is an important component of survivorship care that has not been previously evaluated. Our aims were (1) to assess the utilization of and adherence to medications and treatments for the secondary prevention of myocardial infarction (MI) in CS versus non-cancer patients (NCP) and (2) to compare temporal trends in cardiovascular care between these two patient cohorts. Linking data from Medicare, pharmacy assistance programs, and cancer registries, we calculated the percentage of individuals receiving preventive medications (statins, β-blockers, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors) and revascularization interventions (angioplasty, stent, bypass surgery) within 90 days after acute MI in CS and propensity score–matched NCP. We assessed trends over time and determined predictors of appropriate preventive care using modified Poisson regression. We identified 1,119 CS and 7,886 NCP. Compared to NCP, more survivors received statins (38 vs. 31 %) and β-blockers (67 vs. 59 %), but fewer underwent bypass surgery (1.5 vs. 2.8 %) after MI. From 1997 to 2004, both survivors and NCP were increasingly prescribed medications to prevent future coronary events. Over the same time period, receipt of bypass surgery was significantly lower among survivors. Co-morbidities, such as depression and lung disease, and demographic factors, such as advanced age and female, were associated with underuse of preventive care among survivors when compared to NCP. Use of preventive medications and procedures has generally improved, but uptake of bypass surgery among CS still lags behind NCP.