Trends in the Incidence of Lung Cancer Hospitalizations in Spain, 2001-2011

To analyze changes in the incidence, diagnostic procedures, comorbidity, length of hospital stay and costs of patients hospitalized for lung cancer in Spain between 2001 and 2011.

Retrospective study including all patients hospitalised with a primary diagnosis of lung cancer between 2001 and 2011. Data were collected from the National Hospital Discharge Database, encompassing the entire Spanish population. Economic and sociodemographic characteristics and health-related variables were analyzed.

A total of 298,435 hospitalizations occurred. The overall crude incidence increased from 61.18 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2001 to 65.08 per 100,000 in 2011 (P <.05), with a decrease in men and a proportionate increase in women. The age group with the highest incidence was 70 to 79 years. In 2001, 4.5% of patients had a Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) >2, and in 2011, prevalence of CCI >2 increased to 9.1% (P<.05). Mean length of hospital stay decreased during the study period. Computed tomography was the most common procedure. Mean cost per patient increased from €4,471.22 in 2001 to €5,562.54 (P<.05) in 2011. Factors related to the incidence of hospitalizations were age, sex and year of study in the multivariate analysis.

We found a decrease in the rate of hospitalizations in men and an increase in women, with a concomitant increase in comorbidities and cost; however, length of hospital stay decreased. Factors related to incidence of hospitalizations were age, sex and year of study.