Abstract LB-190: Time to treatment of Latinas with breast cancer utilizing patient navigation: the Six Cities Study

Abstract BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in Latinas. Time from cancer diagnosis to treatment initiation is critical in optimizing cancer care. Patient navigation is a potentially effective means of promoting timely treatment of breast cancer, yet efficacy is insufficiently documented. Redes en Accion here evaluates a culturally sensitive patient navigation program to reduce time from cancer to diagnosis to treatment and increase proportions of women treated within 30 days of diagnosis. METHODS: We analyzed 109 Latinas diagnosed with breast cancer from July 2008-January 2011 (42 navigated, 67 controls). Women were navigated by locally trained navigators or non-navigated (data abstracted from charts). Kaplan-Meier, Cox proportional hazards, and logistic regression were used to determine group differences. RESULTS: Time from cancer diagnosis to 1st treatment was lower in the navigated group (MED 21 days, control 32 days, HR 1.6, p=0.02). 64.3% began treatment within 30 days of cancer diagnosis, compared to 47.8% of non-navigated Latinas (p=0.015) controlling for stage of cancer at diagnosis and numerous characteristics of clinics and participants. Effects were due to navigator activities compared to those who did not need or utilize them, including appointment reminders, transportation arrangements, accompaniment to appointments, and translation services. CONCLUSIONS: Patient-centered navigation to assist Latina women with breast cancer diagnoses significantly reduces time from diagnosis to treatment, and increases the proportion of women who begin treatment within 30 days of diagnosis. Improvement appears to be associated with specific navigator activities. Acknowledgement: Redes En Acción: The National Latino Cancer Research Network (NCI U01 CA114657-05) and the Cancer Therapy and Research Center at the University of Texas Health Science at Center San Antonio (Grant # P30CA054174). Citation Format: Amelie G. Ramirez, Eliseo Perez-Stable, Gregory A. Talavera, Frank J. Penedo, J. Emilio Carrillo, Maria E. Fernandez, Alan E. C. Holden, Edgar Munoz, Dorothy Long-Parma, Sandra San Miguel de Mejors, Kipling Gallion. Time to treatment of Latinas with breast cancer utilizing patient navigation: the Six Cities Study. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-190. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-LB-190</jats:p