Associations Between Patient Perceptions of Communication, Cure, and Other Patient-Related Factors Regarding Patient-Reported Quality of Care Following Surgical Resection of Lung and Colorectal Cancer

Background: The objective of the current study was to analyze various patient-related factors related to patient-reported quality of overall and surgical care following surgical resection of lung or colorectal cancer. Methods: Between 2003 and 2005, 3,954 patients who underwent cancer-directed surgery for newly diagnosed lung (30.3 %) or colorectal (69.7 %) cancer were identified from a population- and health system-based survey of participants from multiple US regions. Factors associated with patient-perceived quality of overall and surgical care were analyzed with multivariable logistic regression models. Results: Overall, 56.7 % of patients reported excellent quality of overall care and 67.9 % of patients reported excellent quality of surgical care; there was no difference by cancer type (P > 0.05). Factors associated with lower likelihood to report excellent quality of overall and surgical care included female sex, minority race, and the presence of multiple comorbidities (all odds ratio [OR] <1, all P < 0.05). Patients who had higher levels of education (overall quality: OR 1.62; surgical quality: OR 1.26), higher annual income (overall quality: OR 1.29; surgical quality: OR 1.23), and good physical function (overall quality: OR 1.35; surgical quality: OR 1.24) were all more likely to report excellent quality of overall and surgical care (all P < 0.05). Furthermore, patients who reported their physician as having excellent communication skills (overall quality: OR 6.49; surgical quality: OR 3.74) as well as patients who perceived their cancer as likely curable (overall quality: OR 1.17; surgical quality: OR 1.11) were more likely to report excellent quality of overall and surgical care (all P < 0.05). Conclusion: Patient-reported quality of care is associated with several factors including race, income, and educational status, as well as physician communication and patient perception of likelihood of cure. Future studies are needed to more closely examine patient–physician relationships and communication barriers, particularly among minority patients and those with lower income and educational status.