Impact of Textbook Oncologic Outcome Attainment on Survival After Gastrectomy: A Review of the National Cancer Database

Background Textbook oncologic outcome (TOO) is a composite outcome measure realized when all desired short-term quality metrics are met after an oncologic operation. This study examined the incidence and impact of achieving a TOO among patients undergoing resection of gastric adenocarcinoma. Methods The 2004-2016 National Cancer Database was queried for patients who underwent curative gastrectomy. Textbook oncologic outcome was defined as having met five metrics: R0 resection, American Joint Committee on Cancer-compliant lymph node evaluation (n >= 15), no prolonged hospital stay (< 75th percentile by year), no 30-day readmission, and receipt of guideline-accordant systemic therapy. Results Of 34,688 patients identified, 8249 (23.8 %) achieved TOO. The patients for whom TOO was achieved were more likely to have traveled farther (p < 0.001) and received care in an academic (p < 0.001) or very high case-volume facility (p < 0.001). The TOO group had a significanty higher median overall survival (OS) than the non-TOO group (80.5 vs 35.3 months; p < 0.001). The Kaplan-Meier curve showed that at 12 months, the survival probability estimate was 92 % for the TOO group versus 77 % for the non-TOO group. At 60 months (long-term survival), survival probability estimates remained higher for the TOO group (57 % vs 38 %). The results of the multivariate Cox regression model found that TOO attainment was significantly associated with a reduced risk of death (hazard ratio, 0.82; p < 0.001). Conclusion The TOO measure is associated with improved OS and reduced risk of death after gastrectomy for gastric adenocarcinoma. Unfortunately, in this study, TOO was obtained in only 23.8 % of cases.