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Socio-Demographic Factors and Cancer Research: 2nd Edition

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Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue is the second edition of a previous one on the topic of "Socio-Demographic Factors and Cancer Research” (https://www.mdpi.com/journal/cancers/special_issues/8K9PDOICO4).

It is well established that socio-economic factors influence cancer treatment outcomes, even when optimal therapies are employed. These contributors are often modifiable and community/culture-dependent, warranting focused research.

We are pleased to invite you to contribute to a Special Issue focused on the socio-economic and socio-demographic factors that influence cancer care and research.

This Special Issue aims to address the specific socio-economic factors that influence the care of individual cancers or a broad spectrum of cancers, with a focus on both global and region-specific factors. It also seeks to further understand the application of unique analysis technologies such as AI for the identification and management of the influences that these socio-economic factors have on the provision and outcomes of cancer care.

We welcome the submission of original research articles and reviews for this Special Issue. Research areas of interest include (but are not limited to) the following:

Socio-economic disparities;
Culture-specific cancer outcomes;
Disparities in cancer care delivery across regions;
The use of AI and machine learning algorithms to predict cancer outcomes using socio-demographic factors;
Qualitative research on the provision of cancer care in economically deprived regions.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Mitchell S. Fourman
Dr. Amanda N. Goldin
Guest Editors

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11 pages, 1926 KB

Open AccessArticle

The Role of Race and Ethnicity on Time to Treatment in Orthopaedic Oncology

by Melissa Romoff, Michael S. Kim, Madison Brunette, Mitchell S. Fourman, Russell Stitzlein and Amanda N. Goldin

Cancers 2026, 18(6), 1006; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers18061006 - 20 Mar 2026

Viewed by 477

Abstract

Background: Timely treatment is critical for patients with bone and soft tissue tumors, but access to care may not be equitable across all populations. While treatment delays have been well studied in other cancers, disparities in time to treatment remain underexplored in orthopaedic oncology. This study aimed to determine whether racial or ethnic disparities exist in the timing of surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation for patients with sarcoma or metastatic bone disease. Methods: A retrospective cohort study was conducted using the TriNetX US Collaborative Network, a multi-institutional electronic health record database. Adult patients undergoing biopsy and subsequently diagnosed with bone sarcoma, soft tissue sarcoma, or metastatic bone disease were identified. Time to treatment was defined as the number of days between biopsy and the first recorded surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation. Patients were stratified by race and ethnicity, and statistical comparisons were performed using Mann–Whitney U tests and t-tests. Results: A total of 63,087 patients met inclusion criteria (55,697 with metastatic bone disease/bone sarcoma and 7390 with soft tissue sarcoma). In the metastatic/bone sarcoma cohort, Hispanic patients had shorter mean time to resection (58 ± 94 vs. 82 ± 239 days, p = 0.008) and fixation (35 ± 142 vs. 72 ± 315 days, p < 0.001) compared to non-Hispanic patients, although median times did not differ significantly. Among black patients, time to fixation was shorter than in White patients (mean 22 ± 103 vs. 114 ± 468 days, p < 0.001; median 0 days in both groups), while delays were observed in time to radiation (median 13 vs. 7 days; mean 85 ± 284 vs. 43 ± 203 days, p < 0.001). In the soft tissue sarcoma cohort, Black patients experienced longer mean times to resection (142 ± 293 vs. 79 ± 216 days) and radiation (141 ± 514 vs. 96 ± 364 days), though comparisons were limited by sample size. Conclusions: This large, multi-institutional study demonstrates that disparities in orthopaedic oncology differ by treatment modality and clinical context. Shorter wait times to surgery among Hispanic and Black patients in metastatic disease likely reflect more advanced disease presentation and barriers to early access, whereas delays in resection and radiation highlight inequities in accessing non-emergent, coordinated oncologic care. Reporting both means and medians provides a more complex understanding of treatment delays and underscores the need for interventions that expand early access to orthopaedic oncologists and ensure timely, equitable care. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Socio-Demographic Factors and Cancer Research: 2nd Edition)

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