The Influence of Racial, Socioeconomic, and Geographic Disparities in the Survival of Patients With Plasmablastic Lymphoma: A Population-Based Analysis From the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Database (2000-2022).

BACKGROUND

Plasmablastic lymphoma (PBL) is a rare, aggressive subtype of large B-cell lymphoma with poor outcomes and limited population-level data available. Social determinants of health (SDOH) are known to impact outcomes in several hematologic malignancies. We used a large national cancer registry to evaluate the influence of SDOH on the survival of PBL patients.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective cohort study using the SEER-17 database, identifying patients diagnosed with PBL from 2000 to 2022. Outcomes assessed were overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS), analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves and Cox proportional hazards models. Analyses were performed using SPSS V.26, P < .05 considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

A total of 891 patients met inclusion criteria. Median OS was 18 months (95% CI, 12-24), and median CSS was 40 months (95% CI, 13.2-66.8). Race was significantly associated with OS, with median OS of 21 months in White patients, 15 months in Black patients, and 11 months in other races (P = .029). On multivariable analysis, Black race remained independently associated with inferior OS (HR 1.38, 95% CI, 1.07-1.77; P = .013), while CSS did not differ significantly by race (P = .252). Lower income and nonmetropolitan residence showed worse unadjusted survival but were not significant after adjustment. Married status was associated with improved OS (HR 0.82; P = .039) and CSS (HR 0.77; P = .020), while diagnosis in 2020 to 2022 was associated with better CSS (HR 0.69; P = .022).

CONCLUSION

In this large, population-based cohort, Black patients with PBL had significantly worse OS compared to White patients, even after adjustment for demographic and geographic factors.