Where lung cancer patients reside may increase their risk of disease recurrence
Lung cancer patients who live in a neighborhood of low socioeconomic status may have a higher chance of disease recurrence and progression, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
The study was published March 29 in Clinical Lung Cancer. David Christiani, Elkan Blout Professor of Environmental Genetics, was co-corresponding author along with Sheldon Lo, PhD ’24.
In the U.S., roughly half of patients with lung cancer undergo successful treatment yet later see their disease recur and progress. Most research to investigate why has focused on cancer biology; some has focused on environmental exposures, primarily carcinogenic chemicals. Far fewer studies have investigated the role of one’s neighborhood. To fill this gap, the researchers examined lung cancer outcomes and neighborhood-level socioeconomic status among more than 3,400 patients—nearly 500 of whom had lung cancer recurrence and progression—enrolled in the Christiani Lab’s Boston Lung Cancer Study. The researchers estimated these patients’ neighborhood socioeconomic characteristics, such as education and income levels, using zip codes and census tract data.
The study found that patients living in disadvantaged neighborhoods had a higher risk of their lung cancer recurring and advancing. Those living in a zip code where the majority of the population had fewer than four years of college education had a 2% higher risk of lung cancer recurrence and progression. And those living in a zip code where the annual household income was less than $75,000 had a 10% higher risk.
The researchers also observed that for every 10% increase in a neighborhood’s population with low educational attainment or income, risk of lung cancer recurrence and progression grew an additional 3%.
“Neighborhood socioeconomic differences may help identify communities where additional health system resources, supportive services, and policy-level interventions are needed to reduce disparities in lung cancer outcomes,” they wrote.
Read the study:
Neighborhood Socioeconomics and Lung Cancer Recurrence and Progression
