Early Death Incidence and Prediction Among Patients With Hypopharynx Squamous Cell Carcinomas

Background: The objective of this study is to evaluate the incidence and associated factors for early death (ED) in hypopharynx squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) patients. Materials and Methods: Patients were extracted from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database between 2004 and 2014. The ED (survival time ≤3 months) rate was calculated, and associated risk factors were evaluated by the logistic regression models. Results: A total of 2659 patients were analyzed and 307 (11.5%) patients died within 3 months after cancer diagnosis, among whom 243 (79.2%) patients died from cancer-specific cause. In univariate analyses, advanced age, divorced/single/widowed (DSW), non-Caucasian, advanced T classification, distant metastasis, and no surgery were significantly associated with ED (P < .05, respectively). Multivariate analyses showed that advanced age, DSW, advanced T classification, distant metastasis, and no surgery were significantly associated with all-cause and cancer-specific ED. Conclusion: Our results showed that a total of 11.5% patients with hypopharynx SCC suffered ED, among whom 79.2% patients died from cancer-specific cause. Predictors of ED are primarily related to age ≥62 years, advanced T classification, distant metastasis, and no surgery but also include unmarried status; better prognostic and predictive tools for select ED patients in larger sample size are needed.