Opioid Prescription Is Associated With Increased Survival in Older Adult Patients With Pancreatic Cancer in the United States: A Propensity Score Analysis
Few studies have assessed the interaction between pain treatment and mortality in pancreatic cancer. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between receipt of opioid prescriptions and survival in adults with pancreatic cancer.
The SEER-Medicare linked database was used to identify patients diagnosed with late-stage pancreatic cancer between 2007 and 2015. Kaplan-Meier models were used to assess the association between opioid prescriptions in the year after cancer diagnosis and survival. Cox proportional hazard models were used to determine the association between opioid receipt and survival, adjusting for propensity score and other relevant confounders including cancer-directed therapies and palliative care referral.
A total of 5,770 older adults with pancreatic cancer were identified; 1,678 (29.1%) were prescribed opioids for at least 60 days. Median survival was increased in those with opioid prescriptions (6.0 months) compared with those without (4.0 months, P < .0001). After adjustment for confounders, opioid prescriptions were still associated with improved survival (hazard ratio 0.80; 95% CI, 0.75 to 0.86). On multivariable analysis, opioid prescriptions were associated with older age, female sex, residing in nonmetro areas, and treatment with celiac plexus neurolysis, chemotherapy, and radiation.
Receipt of opioid prescriptions is associated with longer survival in patients with pancreatic cancer. This may be due to the impact of cancer-related pain, although further studies are needed to better understand the interaction between pain management, cancer-directed therapies, and systemic factors, such as palliative care, availability of opioids, and clinical practice culture.
Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science
2
8%
Nursing and Health Professions
2
8%
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
1
4%
Other
2
8%
Unknown
8
33%
Attention Score in Context
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 18. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 14 May 2022.
All research outputs
#2,664,786
of 34,337,681 outputs
Outputs from JCO Oncology Practice
#548
of 2,191 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#50,998
of 563,159 outputs
Outputs of similar age from JCO Oncology Practice
#17
of 63 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 34,337,681 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 92nd percentile: it's in the top 10% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 2,191 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 18.5. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 74% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 563,159 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 90% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 63 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 73% of its contemporaries.
