ADVERTISEMENT
New Mental Health Diagnoses Negatively Impact Survival Outcomes for Patients with Muscle-Invasive Bladder Cancer
For patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, new mental health diagnoses are associated with worse survival, according to a recent study.
The study included 3794 patients with muscle-invasive bladder cancer, diagnosed between 2008 and 2014, retrieved from the SEER-Medicare database. The primary outcome was cancer-specific and overall hazards of mortality. A secondary outcome was the reported predictors of developing a new mental health diagnosis following bladder cancer diagnosis. The impact of palliative care and mental health diagnoses on survival outcomes were evaluated and adjusted for grade and stage of bladder cancer, comorbidity index, and baseline demographics.
Of all the patients included, 1193 (31%) were diagnosed with a mental health illness after cancer diagnosis, during the study period. The most common diagnoses were depression (13%), alcohol and drug abuse (12%), and anxiety (11%). Those patients who had a new mental health diagnosis following a bladder cancer diagnosis had a 57% higher hazard of overall mortality (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.57; P = .048) and an 80% higher hazard of bladder cancer-specific mortality (HR: 1.81; P = .037).
These data suggest, study authors concluded, “a multimodal approach to bladder cancer treatment should include addressing the non-oncologic needs of the patient to optimize survival outcomes.”
Source:
Ayyash O, Yabes J, Hugar L, et al. New mental health diagnosis as a prognostic factor for muscle-invasive bladder cancer. Clin Genitourin Cancer. Published online November 1, 2022. doi: 10.1016/j.clgc.2022.10.012
