Hospital function-associated deaths among patients with cancer: a comprehensive national study using death records in Japan

Background: In Japan, about 70%-80% of cancer deaths occur in hospitals. The actual number of cancer patients who die in hospitals where palliative care is available is not clear. This study aimed to examine whether hospitals where cancer patients died offered palliative care.

Methods: Patients aged ≥20 who died of cancer in 2018 were included. We used the Japanese death records and publicly available data on hospital functions. Cancer death numbers and hospitals were summarized according to hospital function and age group. Logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the death influence in patients with cancer in designated cancer hospitals.

Results: The study included 302 511 patients, and 168 835 patients (55.8%) died in hospitals with palliative care. In hospitals without palliative care, those with 100-199 and 200-499 beds had more deaths than hospitals not in these ranges of beds. Their median number of deaths per year was 17 and 26, respectively. Categorized by the death numbers per hospital without palliative care, hospitals with 20-49 cancer deaths were common. In the designated cancer hospitals, younger patients aged 20-29 had a higher odds ratio (OR) for death (4.28) than those aged 70-79. Blood cancer had a higher OR (2.36) than colorectal and rectal cancer.

Conclusion: Our findings suggest that outreach of palliative care to hospitals with 100-199 or 200-499 beds and 20-49 deaths lacking palliative care could effectively improve end-of-life cancer care.