Graduation Year
2016
Document Type
Thesis
Degree
M.S.P.H.
Degree Name
MS in Public Health (M.S.P.H.)
Degree Granting Department
Epidemiology and Biostatistics
Major Professor
Hung N. Luu, MD, Ph.D.
Co-Major Professor
Janice Zgibor, R.Ph, Ph.D.
Committee Member
Skai Schwartz, Ph.D.
Keywords
Sarcoma, Disparities, Mortality, Hazard, Annual Percentage Change, SEER
Abstract
Purpose
Our objectives were to 1) determine the difference in Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) incidence and survival between different race/ethnicity groups, and 2) evaluate the difference in survival of RMS between children and adults of these race/ethnicity groups, using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program (SEER) database between 1973-2013.
Patients and Methods
We analyzed racial characteristic and incidence data from 4,280 patients diagnosed with RMS, between 1973-2013, that were reported to the SEER database. Survival and hazard analyses were conducted on 4,268 patients with known follow-up data, with end point being death from any cause.
Results
Over the 40-year study period overall RMS incidence rates have experienced a statistically significant decline (APC: -0.78, 95% CI: -1.28 – -0.28). Whites have experienced a significant decline in incidence rates (APC: -1.05, 95% CI: -1.60 – -0.50). Though not statistically significant, incidence rates in Blacks and Hispanics have trended upwards. While adjusted survival was not predicted by race, survival did significantly differ among racial/ethnic groups in children, with Hispanics and “Others” having the lowest 5- and 10-year survival rates (65% and 58% verses 58% and 56%, respectively). Black race/ethnicity was also shown to be a predictor for mortality for the time period 1990-2013.
Conclusion
Racial/ethnic minorities have worse RMS clinical presentation and incidence rates than Whites. While overall survival is not predicted by race, being an ethnic minority child diagnosed with RMS is predictive of survival. These disparities point towards a genetic component in RMS that has not yet been described.
Scholar Commons Citation
Tinsley, Heather, "Rhabdomyosarcoma Incidence and Survival in Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics from 1973-2013: Analysis from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results Program" (2016). USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/etd/6594
