End-of-life care in Medicare beneficiaries dying with pancreatic cancer

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The authors' goal was to characterize hospice enrollment and aggressiveness of care for pancreatic cancer patients at the end of life. METHODS: Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results and linked Medicare claims data (1992-2006) were used to identify patients with pancreatic cancer who had died (n = 22,818). The authors evaluated hospice use, hospice enrollment ≥4 weeks before death, and aggressiveness of care as measured by receipt of chemotherapy, acute care hospitalization, and intensive care unit (ICU) admission in the last month of life. RESULTS: Overall, 56.9% of patients enrolled in hospice, and 35.9% of hospice users enrolled for 4 weeks or more. Hospice use increased from 36.2% in 1992-1994 to 67.2% in 2004-2006 (P