title: Oropharyngeal cancer as a driver of racial outcome disparities in squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck: 10-year experience at the University of Maryland Greenebaum Cancer Center.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Racial outcome disparities have been observed in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) with diminished survival for black patients compared with white patients.
  
  
  METHODS
  We retrospectively analyzed 1318 patients with primary HNSCC treated at the University of Maryland Greenebaum Cancer Center (UMGCC) from 2000 to 2010.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of all the patients, 65.9% were white, 30.7% were black, and 3.3% were of other races. Black patients were less likely to present with oral cavity cancer, and more likely to present with laryngeal or hypopharyngeal cancers. White patients were more likely to have early stage disease, especially in the oral cavity. Black race was independently associated with worse overall survival (OS) in the entire cohort. Black patients had a significantly worse OS among oral cavity and oropharyngeal cancers, with the largest disparity in oropharyngeal cancer. However, in multivariate analysis, race was only still significant in oropharyngeal cancer.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We observed differences by race in distribution of disease site, stage, and OS. Survival disparity in the entire cohort was driven mostly by differences among oropharyngeal cancer.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.|University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Dan P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Zandberg
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Sandy
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Goloubeva
authors.affiliation: University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center, Baltimore, Maryland.|Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ord
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Scott E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Strome
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Mohan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Suntharalingam
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Rodney
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Robert E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Morales
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Jeffrey S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Wolf
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.|University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Ann
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zimrin
authors.affiliation: University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center, Baltimore, Maryland.|Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Joshua E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Lubek
authors.affiliation: University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Lisa M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Schumaker
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.|University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Kevin J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Cullen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002294:Carcinoma, Squamous Cell / Q000208:ethnology / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000208:ethnology / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D054624:Health Status Disparities; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008396:Maryland; D008875:Middle Aged; D009959:Oropharyngeal Neoplasms / Q000208:ethnology / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D044469:Racial Groups; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D000077195:Squamous Cell Carcinoma of Head and Neck; D015996:Survival Rate; D044465:White People; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: disparity; head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC); oropharyngeal; race; survival