Publicaciones científicas

Long-Term Outcome of Critically Ill Advanced Cancer Patients Managed in an Intermediate Care Unit

16-jun-2022 | Revista: Journal of Clinical Medicine

Nerea Fernández Ros  1 , Félix Alegre  1 , Javier Rodríguez Rodriguez  2 , Manuel F Landecho  1   3 , Patricia Sunsundegui  1 , Alfonso Gúrpide  2 , Ramón Lecumberri  4 , Eva Sanz  5 , Nicolás García  1   3 , Jorge Quiroga  1   3   6 , Juan Felipe Lucena  1


Background: To analyze the long-term outcomes for advanced cancer patients admitted to an intermediate care unit (ImCU), an analysis of a do not resuscitate orders (DNR) subgroup was made.

Methods: A retrospective observational study was conducted from 2006 to January 2019 in a single academic medical center of cancer patients with stage IV disease who suffered acute severe complications. The Simplified Acute Physiology Score 3 (SAPS 3) was used as a prognostic and severity score. In-hospital mortality, 30-day mortality and survival after hospital discharge were calculated.

Results: Two hundred and forty patients with stage IV cancer who attended at an ImCU were included. In total, 47.5% of the cohort had DNR orders. The two most frequent reasons for admission were sepsis (32.1%) and acute respiratory failure (excluding sepsis) (38.7%). Mortality in the ImCU was 10.8%. The mean predicted in-hospital mortality according to SAPS 3 was 51.9%. The observed in-hospital mortality was 37.5% (standard mortality ratio of 0.72). Patients discharged from hospital had a median survival of 81 (30.75-391.25) days (patients with DNR orders 46 days (19.5-92.25), patients without DNR orders 162 days (39.5-632)). The observed mortality was higher in patients with DNR orders: 52.6% vs. 23.8%, p 0 < 0.001. By multivariate logistic regression, a worse ECOG performance status (3-4 vs. 0-2), a higher SAPS 3 Score and DNR orders were associated with a higher in-hospital mortality. By multivariate analysis, non-invasive mechanical ventilation, higher bilirubin levels and DNR orders were significantly associated with 30-day mortality.

Conclusion: For patients with advanced cancer disease, even those with DNR orders, who suffer from acute complications or require continuous monitoring, an ImCU-centered multidisciplinary management shows encouraging results in terms of observed-to-expected mortality ratios.

CITA DEL ARTÍCULO  J Clin Med. 2022 Jun 16;11(12):3472.  doi: 10.3390/jcm11123472