Comorbidity in patients with cancer treated at The Christie

Comorbidities have been shown to impact the presentation and treatment of patients with cancers. This study investigates the prevalence and patterns of comorbidity in a pan-cancer cohort of patients treated at a large UK specialist cancer center over a 9-year period.

A retrospective review of 77,149 patients from 01/01/2014 to 15/12/2022 was conducted using the Adult Comorbidity Evaluation 27 score (ACE-27) to assess the burden of comorbidities across 12 organ systems and an overall comorbidity burden. Binary and multinomial logistic regressions were utilized to evaluate the relationships between comorbidity incidence and demographic and socio-economic factors.

At the time of diagnosis, 59.7% of patients had at least one comorbidity, with the highest prevalence in lung cancer and the lowest in brain/CNS and endocrine gland cancers. Cardiovascular comorbidities were the most frequent. Comorbidity severity was higher in patients from more deprived areas. Age and performance status were associated with a higher incidence of all comorbidities examined. Patients with advanced stage had a lower risk of having a severe comorbidity burden.

Comorbidities are common across all cancers but are more prevalent in certain patient populations. Further research to understand the implications of comorbidities in cancer management is needed.