Researchers at Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego and colleagues have found that prostate cancer treatments varied significantly between county hospitals and private providers. Patients treated in county hospitals are more likely to undergo surgery while patients treated in private facilities tend to receive radiation or hormone therapy. These findings were published online by the journal Cancer on January 25.
"The study examined the factors that drive treatment choices for patients with prostate cancer" said J. Kellogg Parsons, MD, MHS, principal investigator and urologic oncologist at Moores UCSD Cancer Center. "We found that decisions are significantly influenced by the type of health care facility where they receive care."
Surgery, radiation and hormone therapy are the most common treatments for localized prostate cancer. Each is associated with different risks and benefits with no consensus as to the most effective form of treatment, though life expectancy, other illnesses, cancer severity and patient preferences may account in part for treatment choices. Parsons and colleagues at UCLA compared the types of treatments prostate cancer patients received from public and private hospitals as part of a California public assistance program. The researchers analyzed the care provided to 559 men enrolled in a state-funded program for low-income patients known as Improving Access, Counseling and Treatment for Californians with Prostate Cancer (IMPACT).