ETHNIC DISPARITIES IN PATIENTS WITH HEAD AND NECK CANCER UNDERGOING PALLIATIVE CARE AND ITS IMPACT ON CLINICAL OUTCOMES: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Anne Moura; Joel Epstein; Alan Santos-Silva; Erison Santos

doi:10.5327/2525-5711.278

Authors

Anne Moura University of Campinas, Piracicaba Dental School, Semiology and Oral Pathology Areas, Oral Diagnosis Department – Piracicaba (SP), Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0750-7181
Joel Epstein City of Hope National Cancer Center, Department of Surgery – Duarte (CA), USA.
Alan Santos-Silva University of Campinas, Piracicaba Dental School, Semiology and Oral Pathology Areas, Oral Diagnosis Department – Piracicaba (SP), Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2040-6617
Erison Santos University of Campinas, Piracicaba Dental School, Semiology and Oral Pathology Areas, Oral Diagnosis Department – Piracicaba (SP), Brazil. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2088-1912

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5327/2525-5711.278

Keywords:

Head and neck cancer, Palliative care, Healthcare disparities, Ethnicity, Systematic review

Abstract

PURPOSE: This study aimed to investigate ethnic disparities in patients with head and neck cancer undergoing palliative care and their impact on clinical outcomes. METHODS: This review was conducted according to the Pre-ferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. Five electronic databases (Medline/PubMed, SCOPUS, EMBASE, Web of Science, and LILACS), in addition to the gray literature, were used. RESULTS: Eleven studies (497,671 patients) were included in the qualitative analysis, all of which were based in the United States of America. A small portion of the total sample was in PC (5.7%). Most patients in PC were white/Caucasian (76.0%), however, 78.7% of the total sample of this systematic review were white patients. CONCLUSION: Based on the data available in the literature, it was not possible to conclude whether there is ethnic disparity in access to palliative care for patients with head and neck cancer, and whether there ethnicity influences clinical outcomes.

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