Does Patient Interest Show a Need for Cessation Programs in Lung Cancer Multidisciplinary Clinics?

Willingness to participate in a smoking cessation program was associated with improved survival among patients with new lung cancer diagnoses, suggesting those with favorable prognoses may be especially interested in cessation support. These findings were presented during the ASCO20 Virtual Scientific Program.

Smoking cessation at any point after a cancer diagnosis is essential to high-quality oncology care. Most patients who smoke are motivated to quit at diagnosis; however, few receive effective cessation therapy. The ideal setting in which to integrate a smoking cessation program is a multidisciplinary clinic (MDC) because it is equipped to allow patients and their caregivers to work with key specialists to coordinate their cancer care.

Researchers sought to assess the need for cessation services within the multidisciplinary thoracic oncology program at Baptist Cancer Center in Memphis, Tennessee. They evaluated sociodemographic/clinical characteristics, smoking status, and tobacco dependence in 641 consecutive new patients with lung cancer diagnosed from 2014 to 2019 (average age, 69 years [range, 32-95]).

Among the patients included in the study, 47% were male, 64% were white, 34% were black, and 17% were college graduates. Reported smoking status was as follows: 90% had ever smoked, 34% were current smokers, and 24% quit smoking within the past year. Among the current smokers, 60% were very interested in quitting and 37% said they would participate in a clinic-based cessation program.

Willingness to participate was associated with greater interest in quitting (P =.0010) and greater overall survival (log rank P =.01; hazard ratio, 0.48; 95% CI, 0.24-0.95) but was not associated with any sociodemographic, clinical, or smoking-related characteristics.

“There is considerable need for cessation services and relapse-prevention support within a coordinated, MDC lung cancer care setting,” the researchers concluded.

Disclosure: Multiple authors declared affiliations with industry. Please refer to the original abstract for a full list of disclosures.

Reference

Meadows M, Ward KD, Faris NR, et al. Interest in cessation treatment and survival among smokers in a community-based multidisciplinary thoracic oncology program. Presented at: ASCO20 Virtual Scientific Program. J Clin Oncol. 2020;38(suppl):abstr 2028.