Jennifer M. Yeh

Health utility, a summary measure of quality of life, has not been previously used to compare outcomes among childhood cancer survivors and individuals without a cancer history. We estimated health utility (0, death; 1, perfect health) using the Short Form-6D (SF-6D) in survivors (n = 7105) and siblings of survivors (n = 372) (using the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study cohort) and the general population (n = 12 803) (using the Medical Expenditures Panel Survey). Survivors had statistically significantly lower SF-6D scores than the general population (mean = 0.769, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.766 to 0.771, vs mean = 0.809, 95% CI = 0.806 to 0.813, respectively, P < .001, two-sided). Young adult survivors (age 18-29 years) reported scores comparable with general population estimates for people age 40 to 49 years. Among survivors, SF-6D scores were largely determined by number and severity of chronic conditions. No clinically meaningful differences were identified between siblings and the general population (mean = 0.793, 95% CI = 0.782 to 0.805, vs mean = 0.809, 95% CI = 0.806 to 0.813, respectively). This analysis illustrates the importance of chronic conditions on long-term survivor quality of life and provides encouraging results on sibling well-being. Preference-based utilities are informative tools for outcomes research in cancer survivors.

Objective To estimate the cost-effectiveness of noncardia gastric adenocarcinoma (NCGA) screening strategies based on new biomarker and endoscopic technologies. Design Using an intestinal-type NCGA microsimulation model, we evaluated the following one-time screening strategies for US men: (1) serum pepsinogen to detect gastric atrophy (with endoscopic follow-up of positive screen results), (2) endoscopic screening to detect dysplasia and asymptomatic cancer (with endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) treatment for detected lesions) and (3) Helicobacter pylori screening and treatment. Screening performance, treatment effectiveness, cancer and cost data were based on published literature and databases. Subgroups included current, former and never smokers. Outcomes included lifetime cancer risk and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs), expressed as cost per quality-adjusted-life-year (QALY) gained. Results Screening the general population at age 50 years reduced the lifetime intestinal-type NCGA risk (0.24%) by 26.4% with serum pepsinogen screening, 21.2% with endoscopy and EMR and 0.2% with H. pylori screening/treatment. Targeting current smokers reduced the lifetime risk (0.35%) by 30.8%, 25.5%, and 0.1%, respectively. For all subgroups, serum pepsinogen screening was more effective and more cost-effective than all other strategies, although its ICER varied from $76 000/QALY (current smokers) to $105 400/QALY (general population). Results were sensitive to H. pylori prevalence, screen age and serum pepsinogen test sensitivity. Probabilistic sensitivity analysis found that at a $100 000/QALY willingness-to-pay threshold, the probability that serum pepsinogen screening was preferred was 0.97 for current smokers. Conclusions Although not warranted for the general population, targeting high-risk smokers for serum pepsinogen screening may be a cost-effective strategy to reduce intestinal-type NCGA mortality.

Cardiac assessment every 1 to 5 years for childhood cancer survivors is recommended to detect asymptomatic left ventricular dysfunction. The authors estimated the clinical benefits and cost-effecti... Background: Childhood cancer survivors treated with cardiotoxic therapies are recommended to have routine cardiac assessment every 1 to 5 years, but the long-term benefits are uncertain. Objective:...

Although gastric cancer has declined dramatically in the US, the disease remains the second leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide. A better understanding of reasons for the decline can provide important insights into effective preventive strategies. We sought to estimate the contribution of risk factor trends on past and future intestinal-type noncardia gastric adenocarcinoma (NCGA) incidence. We developed a population-based microsimulation model of intestinal-type NCGA and calibrated it to US epidemiologic data on precancerous lesions and cancer. The model explicitly incorporated the impact of Helicobacter pylori and smoking on disease natural history, for which birth cohort-specific trends were derived from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Between 1978 and 2008, the model estimated that intestinal-type NCGA incidence declined 60% from 11.0 to 4.4 per 100,000 men, H. pylori and smoking trends combined accounted for 47% (range = 30%–58%) of the observed decline. With no tobacco control, incidence would have declined only 56%, suggesting that lower smoking initiation and higher cessation rates observed after the 1960s accelerated the relative decline in cancer incidence by 7% (range = 0%–21%). With continued risk factor trends, incidence is projected to decline an additional 47% between 2008 and 2040, the majority of which will be attributable to H. pylori and smoking (81%; range = 61%–100%). Limitations include assuming all other risk factors influenced gastric carcinogenesis as one factor and restricting the analysis to men. Trends in modifiable risk factors explain a significant proportion of the decline of intestinal-type NCGA incidence in the US, and are projected to continue. Although past tobacco control efforts have hastened the decline, full benefits will take decades to be realized, and further discouragement of smoking and reduction of H. pylori should be priorities for gastric cancer control efforts. Please see later in the article for the Editors' Summary Cancer of the stomach (gastric cancer) is responsible for a tenth of all cancer deaths world-wide, with an estimated 700,000 people dying from this malignancy every year, making it the second most common cause of global cancer-related deaths after lung cancer. Unfortunately, the projected global burden of this disease estimate that deaths from gastric cancer will double by 2030. Gastric cancer has a poor prognosis with only a quarter of people with this type of cancer surviving more than five years. In order to reduce deaths, it is therefore of utmost importance to identify and reduce the modifiable risk factors associated with gastric cancer. Smoking and chronic gastric infection with the bacteria Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori), are known to be two common modifiable risk factors for gastric cancer, particularly for a type of gastric cancer called intestinal-type noncardia gastric adenocarcinoma (NCGA), which occurs at the distal end of the stomach and accounts for more than half of all cases of gastric cancer in US men. H. pylori initiates a precancerous process, and so infection with this bacteria can increase intestinal-type NCGA risk by as much as 6-fold while smoking doubles cancer risk by advancing increasing progression of existing lesions. Changes in these two risk factors over the past century (especially following the US Surgeon General's Report on Smoking and Health in 1964) have led to a dramatic decline in the rates of gastric cancer in US men. Understanding the combined effects of underlying risk factor trends on health outcomes for intestinal-type NCGA at the population level can help to predict future cancer trends and burden in the US. So in this study, the researchers used a mathematical model to estimate the contribution of H. pylori and smoking trends on the decline in intestinal-type NCGA incidence in US men. The researchers used birth cohorts derived from data in two national databases, the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) to develop a population-based model of intestinal-type NCGA. To ensure model predictions were consistent with epidemiologic data, the researchers calibrated the model to data on cancer and precancerous lesions and using the model, projected population outcomes between 1978 and 2040 for a base-case scenario (in which all risk factor trends were allowed to vary over time). The researchers then evaluated alternative risk factors scenarios to provide insights on the potential benefit of past and future efforts to control gastric cancer. Using these methods, the researchers estimated that the incidence of intestinal-type NCGA (standardized by age) fell from 11.0 to 4.4 per 100,000 men between 1978 and 2008, a drop of 60%. When the researchers incorporated only H. pylori prevalence and smoking trends into the model (both of which fell dramatically over the time period) they found that intestinal-type NCGA incidence fell by only 28% (from 12.7 to 9.2 per 100,000 men), suggesting that H. pylori and smoking trends are responsible for 47% of the observed decline. The researchers found that H. pylori trends alone were responsible for 43% of the decrease in cancer but smoking trends were responsible for only a 3% drop. The researchers also found evidence that after the 1960s, observed trends in lower smoking initiation and higher cessation accelerated the decline in intestinal-type NCGA incidence by 7%. Finally, the researchers found that intestinal-type NCGA incidence is projected to decline an additional 47% between 2008 and 2040 (4.4 to 2.3 per 100,000 men) with H. pylori and smoking trends accounting for more than 80% of the observed fall. These findings suggest that, combined with a fall in smoking rates, almost half of the observed fall in rates of intestinal-type NCGA cancer in US men between 1978 and 2008 was attributable to the decline in infection rates of H. pylori. Rates for this cancer are projected to continue to fall by 2040, with trends for both H. pylori infection and smoking accounting for more than 80% of the observed fall, highlighting the importance of the relationship between risk factors changes over time and achieving long-term reduction in cancer rates. This study is limited by the assumptions made in the model and in that it only examined one type of gastric cancer and excluded women. Nevertheless, this modeling study highlights that continued efforts to reduce rates of smoking and H. pylori infection will help to reduce rates of gastric cancer. Please access these Web sites via the online version of this summary at http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001451.

As pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) survival rates approach > 95%, treatment decisions are increasingly based on minimizing late effects. Using a model-based approach, we explored whether the addition of radiotherapy contributes to improved overall long-term survival. We developed a state-transition model to simulate the lifetime HL clinical course, and we compared 2 treatment strategies: chemotherapy alone (CT) and chemoradiotherapy (CRT). Data on HL relapse, late recurrence, and excess second cancer and cardiac late-effects mortality were estimated from the published literature and databases. Outcomes included conditional life expectancy, cause-specific mortality, and proportion alive at age 50. For a hypothetical cohort of HL patients (diagnosis age 15), conditional life expectancy was 57.2 years with CT compared with 56.4 years with CRT. Estimated lifetime HL mortality risk was 3.6% with CT versus 2.2% with CRT. In contrast, combined risk of excess late-effects mortality was lower for CT (1.8% vs 7.4% with CRT). Among those alive at age 50, only 9.2% of those initially treated with CT were at risk for radiation-related late effects (100% for CRT). Initial treatment with CT may be associated with longer average per-person life expectancy. These results support the need for careful consideration of the risk-benefit profile of radiation as frontline therapy in pediatric patients.

BACKGROUND: Although surveillance for Barrett esophagus and other gastrointestinal precancerous conditions is recommended, no analogous guidelines exist for gastric lesions. The objective of this study was to estimate the clinical benefits and cost‐effectiveness of treatment and endoscopic surveillance to prevent gastric cancer.METHODS: The authors developed a state‐transition decision model for a cohort of US men with a recent incidental diagnosis of gastric precancerous lesions (dysplasia, intestinal metaplasia, or atrophy). Strategies included 1) no surveillance or treatment and 2) referral for surveillance and treatment, and varied by surveillance frequency (none, every 10 years, every 5 years, or every year) and treatment modality for dysplastic and cancerous lesions (surgery or endoscopic mucosal resection [EMR]). The term “post‐treatment surveillance” was restricted to surveillance of individuals after treatment. Data were based on published literature and databases. Outcomes included lifetime gastric cancer risk, quality‐adjusted life expectancy, lifetime costs, and incremental cost‐effectiveness ratios.RESULTS: For a cohort of men with dysplasia aged 50 years, the lifetime gastric cancer risk was 5.9%. EMR with annual surveillance reduced the lifetime cancer risk by 90% and cost $39,800 per quality‐adjusted life year (QALY). Addition of post‐treatment surveillance every 10 years provided little incremental benefit (∼5%) but cost >$1 million per QALY. Results were most sensitive to surgical risks and the proportion of lesions completely removed with EMR. For intestinal metaplasia, surveillance every 10 years reduced lifetime cancer risk by 61% and cost $544,500 per QALY.CONCLUSIONS: EMR with surveillance every 1 to 5 years for gastric dysplasia was promising for secondary cancer prevention and had a cost‐effectiveness ratio that would be considered attractive in the United States. Endoscopic surveillance of less advanced lesions did not appear to be cost‐effective, except possibly for immigrants from high‐risk countries. Cancer 2010. © 2010 American Cancer Society.

Objective Although gastric cancer incidence is declining in China, trends may differ from historical patterns in developed countries. Our aim was to (1) retrospectively estimate the effects of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) and smoking on past gastric cancer incidence and (2) project how interventions on these two risk factors can reduce future incidence. Methods We used a population-based model of intestinal-type gastric cancer to estimate gastric cancer incidence between 1985 and 2050. Disease and risk factor data in the model were from community-based epidemiological studies and national prevalence surveys. Results Between 1985 and 2005, age-standardized gastric cancer incidence among Chinese men declined from 30.8 to 27.2 per 100,000 (12%); trends in H. pylori and smoking prevalences accounted for >30% of overall decline. If past risk factor trends continue, gastric cancer incidence will decline an additional 30% by 2050. Yet, annual cases will increase from 116,000 to 201,000 due to population growth and aging. Assuming that H. pylori prevention/treatment and tobacco control are implemented in 2010, the decline in gastric cancer incidence is projected to increase to 33% with universal H. pylori treatment for 20-year-olds, 42% for a hypothetical childhood H. pylori vaccine, and 34% for aggressive tobacco control. Conclusions The decline in gastric cancer incidence has been slower than in developed countries and will be offset by population growth and aging. Public health interventions should be implemented to reduce the total number of cases.

Gastric cancer is the second leading cause of cancer‐related deaths worldwide. Treatment forHelicobacter pyloriinfection, the leading causal risk factor, can reduce disease progression, but the long‐term impact on cancer incidence is uncertain. Using the best available data, we estimated the potential health benefits and economic consequences associated withH. pyloriscreening in a high‐risk region of China. An empirically calibrated model of gastric cancer was used to project reduction in lifetime cancer risk, life‐expectancy and costs associated with (i) single lifetime screening (age 20, 30 or 40); (ii) single lifetime screening followed by rescreening individuals with negative results and (iii) universal treatment forH. pylori(age 20, 30 or 40). Data were from the published literature and national and international databases. Screening and treatment forH. pyloriat age 20 reduced the mean lifetime cancer risk by 14.5% (men) to 26.6% (women) and cost less than $1,500 per year of life saved (YLS) compared to no screening. Rescreening individuals with negative results and targeting older ages was less cost‐effective. Universal treatment prevented an additional 1.5% to 2.3% of risk reduction, but incremental cost‐effectiveness ratios exceeded $2,500 per YLS. Screening young adults forH. pyloricould prevent one in every 4 to 6 cases of gastric cancer in China and would be considered cost‐effective using the GDP per capita threshold. These results illustrate the potential promise of a gastric cancer screening program and provide rationale for urgent clinical studies to move the prevention agenda forward.

Although epidemiologic studies have established the relationship between Helicobacter pylori and gastric cancer and promising results that H. pylori treatment can reduce cancer incidence among individuals without preexisting precancerous lesions, there is no consensus on whether screening for H. pylori should be conducted. Our objective was to synthesize the available data to develop and empirically calibrate a mathematical model of gastric cancer and H. pylori in China and Colombia that could be used to provide qualitative insight into the benefits and cost-effectiveness of primary and secondary gastric cancer prevention strategies. The model represents the natural history of noncardia intestinal type gastric adenocarcinomas as a sequence of transitions among health states (e.g., normal gastric mucosa, chronic nonatrophic gastritis, gastric atrophy, intestinal metaplasia, dysplasia, and gastric cancer) stratified by H. pylori status. Initial plausible ranges for each parameter were established using data from published literature. A likelihood-based empirical calibration approach was used to identify multiple good-fitting parameter sets that were consistent with epidemiologic data. We then used these parameter sets to estimate a range of likely outcomes associated with H. pylori screening. This modeling approach allows for parameter uncertainty surrounding the natural history of H. pylori and gastric cancer to be reflected in the results of comparative analyses of different gastric cancer prevention strategies. As better data become available, the model can be refined and recalibrated, and, as such, be used as an iterative tool to assess the likely health and economic outcomes associated with gastric cancer prevention strategies. (Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2008;17(5):1179–87)