The interaction of rurality and rare cancers for travel time to cancer care

Bibliographic Data

ID19432302
AuthorsTracy Onega (0000-0002-1633-3040, Department of Population Health Sciences and Huntsman Cancer Institute University of Utah Salt Lake City Utah USA, corresponding author), Jennifer Alford‐Teaster (0000-0002-2600-446X, Norris Cotton Cancer Center at Dartmouth Lebanon New Hampshire USA), Chris Leggett (The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice Lebanon New Hampshire USA), Andrew P Loehrer (0000-0001-7747-224X, Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice), Andrew Loehrer (The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice Lebanon New Hampshire USA), Julie E Weiss (0000-0002-8274-5991, Norris Cotton Cancer Center at Dartmouth Lebanon New Hampshire USA), Erika L Moen (0000-0002-9800-8742, The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice Lebanon New Hampshire USA), Catherine C Pollack (0000-0002-7434-5306, Dartmouth College), Catherine C Pollack Catherine C Pollack (Department of Biomedical Data Science Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth Lebanon New Hampshire USA), Fahui Wang (0000-0001-7152-2226, Graduate School and Department of Geography & Anthropology Louisiana State University Baton Rouge Louisiana USA)
Year2023
Volume39
Issue2
Pages426-433
Publication date2023-03-01
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Journal of Rural Health (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0890-765X • E-ISSN: 1748-0361
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/jrh.12693
PMID35821496
OpenAlexW4285091718
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited18

PURPOSE: Geographic access to cancer care is known to significantly impact utilization and outcomes. Longer travel times have negative impacts for patients requiring highly specialized care, such as for rare cancers, and for those in rural areas. Scant population-based research informs geographic access to care for rare cancers and whether rurality impacts that access. METHODS: Using Medicare data (2014-2015), we identified prevalent cancers and cancer-directed surgeries, chemotherapy, and radiation. We classified cancers as rare (incidence 2 hours away for rare cancers, compared to 8.3% for common cancers. Increasing rurality disproportionately increased travel time to surgical care for rare compared to common cancers. CONCLUSIONS: Travel times to cancer services are longest for surgery, especially among rural residents, yet not markedly longer overall between rare versus common cancers. Understanding geographic access to cancer care for patients with rare cancers is important to delivering specialized care

Business · Cancer · Family medicine · Pathology · Rural area · Rurality · Advances in Oncology and Radiotherapy · Global Cancer Incidence and Screening · Medicine · Multiple and Secondary Primary Cancers · Internal Medicine

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