Survival in Soft Tissue Sarcomas in Hispanics vs Non-hispanic Whites: A Single-centre Experience

Abstract

Background: Racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic factors have been implicated in the variability of survival rates among soft tissue sarcoma (STS). These disparities are multifactorial and may reflect differences in disease biology, access to care, treatment responses, and others. In situations where different racial groups have equitable access to healthcare, healthcare disparities can decrease, and survival gaps can narrow. Differences in survival in STS in racial minorities have been poorly studied. Recognizing the potential impact of such disparities, our study thereby contributes to the ongoing discourse on healthcare equity in STS outcomes. Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of 30 STS patients, stratifying them into Hispanic (H) and non-Hispanic white (NHW) groups at Dignity Health Cancer Institute in Phoenix, Arizona. The Mann-Whitney U test was chosen to compare survival distributions, given the non-normal distribution of our sample. Survival analysis was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method, and the log-rank test was applied to determine statistical significance. All analyses were executed in GraphPad Prism software. Results: Our cohort comprised 13 (43%) NHW and 17 (57%) H patients. The mean ages were 57.2 years for NHW and 48.9 years for H, with a balanced gender distribution across groups. The most common subtypes of STS in NHW were liposarcoma (n=3, 23.1%), and spindle cell carcinoma (n=2,15.4%). Comparatively, the most common subtypes of STS in H were liposarcoma (n=5, 29.4%) and leiomyosarcoma (n=3, 17.6%). All patients were diagnosed with Stage 4 STS. Treatment modalities differed marginally, with NHW patients undergoing more surgical interventions, while H patients were more frequently administered chemotherapy. Median overall survival from the start of first-line therapy was 412 days for NHW and 500 days for H patients. Despite the longer median overall survival observed in Hispanics, the intergroup difference did not reach statistical significance (P = 0.68). Conclusions: The similar survival times between H and NHW STS patients at our institution may hint at an equitable provision of care across racial demographics in a relatively controlled single-center experience. However, the trend of extended survival in the Hispanic group, while not statistically confirmed, raises questions that merit further inquiry. This study serves as a preliminary exploration into racial disparities in STS, advocating for larger-scale research with more diverse patient populations. Further studies are essential to understand these findings and identify and optimize factors contributing to narrowing the survival gap in minorities, with the goal of improving STS prognosis for all racial groups.