Individual- and Area-Level Socioeconomic Inequalities in Esophageal Cancer Survival in Shandong Province, China: A Multilevel Analysis.

Background: China contributes to almost half of the esophageal cancer cases diagnosed globally each year. However, the prognosis information of this disease in this large population is scarce.

Methods: Data on a population-based cohort consisting of residents of Shandong Province, China who were diagnosed with esophageal cancer during the period from 2005 to 2014 were analyzed. The cancer-specific survival rates were estimated using Kaplan-Meier analysis. Discrete-time multilevel mixed-effects survival models were used to investigate socioeconomic status (SES) disparities on esophageal cancer survival.

Results: The unadjusted 1-, 3-, and 5-year cause-specific survival rates were 59.6% [95% confidence interval (CI), 59.2%-59.9%], 31.9% (95% CI, 31.5%-32.3%), and 23.6% (95% CI, 23.1%-24.0%), respectively. Patients of blue-collar occupations had higher risk of esophageal cancer-related death than those of white-collar occupations in the first 2 years after diagnosis. Rural patients had higher risk of death than urban patients in the first 3 years after diagnosis. The risks of esophageal cancer-related death among patients living in low/middle/high SES index counties were not different in the first 2 years after diagnosis. However, patients living in high SES index counties had better long-term survival (3-5 years postdiagnosis) than those living in middle or low SES index counties.

Conclusions: Socioeconomic inequalities in esophageal cancer survival exist in this Chinese population. Higher individual- or area-level SES is associated with better short-term or long-term cancer survival.

Impact: Elucidation of the relative roles of the SES factors on survival could guide interventions to reduce disparities in the prognosis of esophageal cancer.