Health disparities — often driven by social, economic and demographic factors such as race — can lead to unequal access to care and poorer health outcomes.
Researchers from The Institute for Education Research at UHN investigated surgical outcomes among Black and White urologic cancer patients. They found that Black patients experienced more complications after surgery, despite having similar survival rates.
Analyzing data from over 28,000 patients in a national surgical database, the research team, led by first author Dr. Alex Bak, an anesthesiology resident at the University of Toronto, matched and compared individuals by procedure type, demographics and medical history. Black patients were more likely to experience complications such as unplanned hospital readmissions, reduced kidney function and cardiac arrest compared to White patients.
Interestingly, Black patients were also less likely to be diagnosed with heart attacks or certain infections, including surgical wound infections.
These findings suggest that racial disparities in surgical recovery may be influenced by a combination of patient health factors, health care provider practices and systemic barriers, such as limited access to specialized care or consistent followup support.
Lack of access to high-volume surgical centres, where outcomes are typically better, may also contribute to these differences.
The study highlights the need for targeted interventions to improve surgical outcomes for racialized populations. Future research will explore how hospital referral patterns and access to high-volume surgical centers may shape these differences.
By addressing these gaps in care, health systems can move toward more equitable outcomes for all patients undergoing urologic cancer treatment.
Dr. Jason Lee, senior author of the study, is a clinician investigator at The Institute for Education Research at UHN. Dr. Lee is also an associate professor in the Department of Surgery at the University of Toronto.
This work was supported by UHN Foundation.
