Geographical Distance from Quaternary Treatment Center Does Not Impact Choice of Upfront Therapy, Clinical Trial Participation and Outcomes in Patients with Newly Diagnosed AML

Upfront therapy for newly diagnosed patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) includes intensive induction chemotherapy with curative intent, low dose chemotherapy, best supportive care, and clinical trials. The choice between these therapies is influenced by multiple factors including age, cytogenetic and molecular mutations, and performance status. In our single payer provincial health care system, induction chemotherapy and clinical trials are only offered at a small number of specialized quaternary care centers with geographically large catchment areas. As a result, some patients are required to travel long distances for their appointments, which may constitute a barrier to care, especially among elderly patients. We therefore asked whether distance from the quaternary center influences the choice of care for AML.

We reviewed the records of patients ≥18 years of age diagnosed with AML from 2015-2017 and assessed at our quaternary care center in Toronto, Canada. We compared upfront therapy choice and survival between patients living close versus distant from the cancer center (empirically defined as <50 km versus >50km) and stratified by age.

A total of 675 patients were assessed by our quaternary center for a new diagnosis of AML during the timeframe studied. Of those patients, 477 (71%) patients lived ≤50km, and 198 (29%) patients lived >50km from the quaternary center. The overall median distance from patient residence to the quaternary center was 33.2km (range: 1-1791km), and the median distance of patients in the >50km group was 93km (range: 50.2-1791km). Age, sex, baseline Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG), and cytogenetic risk were not significantly different between the two groups.

There were no differences in the proportion of patients receiving induction chemotherapy or clinical trial as upfront therapy between patients living close versus distant from the quaternary center, even when stratified for age ≥70 years.

There was no difference in overall survival between patients living ≤50km versus >50km from the quaternary center either overall, or when stratified by age.

In conclusion, geographic distance from treatment center does not appear to impact choice of upfront therapy, access to clinical trials, or clinical outcomes in this study of newly diagnosed patients with AML treated in a single payer environment.

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