Patient Demographic and Tumor Characteristics Influencing Oncologist Follow-Up Frequency in Older Breast Cancer Survivors

Background Although recommendations for breast cancer follow-up frequency exist, current follow-up guidelines are standardized, without consideration of individual patient characteristics. Some studies suggest oncologists are using these characteristics to tailor follow-up recommendations, but it is...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annals of surgical oncology 2013-12, Vol.20 (13), p.4128-4136
Main Authors: Neuman, Heather B., Weiss, Jennifer M., Schrag, Deborah, Ronk, Katie, Havlena, Jeffrey, LoConte, Noelle K., Smith, Maureen A., Greenberg, Caprice C.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aftercare
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Biomarkers, Tumor - analysis
Breast Neoplasms - therapy
Breast Oncology
Demography
Female
Follow-Up Studies
Humans
Medical Oncology
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Neoplasm Grading
Oncology
Practice Patterns, Physicians
Prognosis
SEER Program
Surgery
Surgical Oncology
Survival Rate
Survivors
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Summary:Background Although recommendations for breast cancer follow-up frequency exist, current follow-up guidelines are standardized, without consideration of individual patient characteristics. Some studies suggest oncologists are using these characteristics to tailor follow-up recommendations, but it is unclear how this is translating into practice. The objective of this study was to examine current patterns of oncologist breast cancer follow-up and determine the association between patient and tumor characteristics and follow-up frequency. Methods The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-Medicare database was used to identify stage I–III breast cancer patients diagnosed 2000–2007 ( n  = 39,241). Oncologist follow-up visits were defined using Medicare specialty provider codes and the linked AMA Masterfile. Multinomial logistic regression determined the association between patient and tumor characteristics and oncologist follow-up visit frequency. Results Younger age ( p  
ISSN:1068-9265
1534-4681
DOI:10.1245/s10434-013-3170-8