Noninitiation of Adjuvant Chemotherapy in Women With Localized Breast Cancer: The Breast Cancer Quality of Care Study

Purpose For some women, adjuvant chemotherapy for nonmetastatic breast cancer decreases recurrences and increases survival; however, patient-physician decisions regarding chemotherapy receipt can be influenced by medical and nonmedical factors. Patients and Methods We used a prospective cohort design and multivariate modeling to investigate factors related to noninitiation of chemotherapy among women with newly diagnosed breast cancer recruited from three US sites. We interviewed patients at baseline and during treatment on sociodemographic, tumor, and treatment decision-making factors. Patients were categorized according to National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines as those for whom chemotherapy was definitely indicated, clinically discretionary, or discretionary based on age greater than 70 years. Results Of 1,145 patients recruited, chemotherapy was clinically indicated for 392 patients, clinically discretionary for 459 patients, discretionary because of age for 169 patients, and not indicated f...