Social support and its implications in older, early-stage breast cancer patients in CALGB 49907 (Alliance A171301)

BackgroundStudies point to a direct association between social support and better cancer outcomes. This study examined whether baseline social support is associated with better survival and fewer chemotherapy-related adverse events in older, early-stage breast cancer patients. MethodsThis study is a pre-planned secondary analysis of CALGB 49907/Alliance A171301, a randomized trial that compared standard adjuvant chemotherapy versus capecitabine in breast cancer patients 65years of age or older. A subset reported on the extent of their social support with questionnaires that were completed 6 times over 2years. ResultsThe median age of this 331-patient cohort was 72years (range: 65, 90); 179 (55%) were married, and 210 (65%) lived with someone. One hundred forty-five patients (46%) described a social network of 0-10 people; 110 (35%) of 11-25; and 58 (19%) of 26 or more. The Medical Outcomes Study (MOS) social support survey revealed that the median scores (range) for emotional/informational, tangible, positive social interaction, and affectionate social support were 94 (3, 100), 94 (0, 100), 96 (0, 100), and 100 (8, 100), respectively. Social support scores appeared stable over 2years and higher (more support) than in other cancer settings. No statistically significant associations were observed between social support and survival and adverse events in multivariate analyses. However, married patients had smaller tumors, and those with arthritis reported less social support. ConclusionAlthough social support did not predict survival and adverse events, the exploratory but plausible inverse associations with larger tumors and arthritis suggest that social support merits further study. Copyright (c) 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.