Cancer Research and Treatment

Original Articles

General

Emergency Department Utilization of Adult Cancer Patient in Korea: A Nationwide Population-Based Study, 2017-2019: Hye Sook Min, Hye Jung Chang, Ho Kyung Sung; Cancer Res Treat. 2022;54(3):680-689. Published online September 17, 2021; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4143/crt.2021.699

Purpose
The current study aimed to identify the overall characteristics of cancer-related emergency department (ED) visits by adult in Korea, including analyses of factors associated with ED stay time and outcomes nationwide.
Materials and Methods
We collected data on cancer-related ED visits from the National Emergency Department Information System (NEDIS) database between 2017 and 2019.
Results
ED visits by cancer patients comprised 5.5% (667,935 visits) of total ED visits from 2017 to 2019, which was slightly higher than in other counties. Patients with cancer who visited the ED were over 50 years old, the majority being males, and patients with cancer visited EDs in certified tertiary hospitals more frequently than patients without cancer. In multivariate analyses, the adjusted odds ratio for a length of stay more than 8 hours in the ED of certified tertiary hospitals was 126.34 (95% confidence interval, 1.422 to 1.460) when compared to hospitals. Nevertheless, the longer the patients stayed in the ED, the more likely they were to be admitted.
Conclusion
The longer ED stay and higher proportion of cancer patient hospitalizations suggest that cancer patients visit ED to be admitted as well as to receive acute care. The frequency of ED visits and admission may be adjusted to some extent depending on outpatient education, such as self-management of symptoms and situations. Improving cancer care in local communities should be met though provisions such as linking treatment between hospitals or supplying appropriate medical personnel, even for the efficient use of ED resources in hospitals.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

Risk Factors for Emergency Room Visits Among Patients With Head and Neck Cancer: A Longitudinal Cohort Study Within the Korean Healthcare System
Heejun Yi, Hyojun Kim, Younghac Kim, Ye-Jin Suh, Joo Hyun Park, Nayeon Choi, Han-Sin Jeong
Clinical and Experimental Otorhinolaryngology.2025; 18(1): 64. CrossRef
Understanding oncologic emergencies and related emergency department visits and hospitalizations: a systematic review
Sule Yilmaz, Komal Aryal, Jasmine King, Jason J. Bischof, Arthur S. Hong, Nancy Wood, Bonnie E. Gould Rothberg, Matthew F. Hudson, Sara W. Heinert, Monica K. Wattana, Christopher J. Coyne, Cielito Reyes-Gibby, Knox Todd, Gary Lyman, Adam Klotz, Beau Abar,
BMC Emergency Medicine.2025;[Epub] CrossRef
Trends and institutional patterns of extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Korea: a nationwide analysis, 2016–2023
Ho Kyung Sung, Yang Hyun Cho, In Seok Jeong, Hyung Soo Kim, Su Jin Kim, Jun Ho Lee, Hee-Jung Kim, Ji-Eon Kim, Jae-Seung Jung
Resuscitation.2025; 215: 110692. CrossRef
Spatial Accessibility to Emergency Departments and Surgical Treatment for Patients with Acute Appendicitis in South Korea
Kyungsik Kim, Ho Kyung Sung, Kyung-Shin Lee, Eunyoung Kim, Hansu Shin, Hye Sook Min
Yonsei Medical Journal.2025; 66(11): 797. CrossRef
Trends in emergency department visits for emergency care–sensitive conditions before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: a nationwide study in Korea, 2019–2021
Seonji Kim, Ho Kyung Sung, Jeehye Lee, Eunsil Ko, Seong Jung Kim
Clinical and Experimental Emergency Medicine.2024; 11(1): 88. CrossRef
Impact of the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic on emergency department-to-intensive care unit admissions in Korea: an interrupted time-series analysis
Kyung-Shin Lee, Changwoo Han, Hye Sook Min, Jeehye Lee, Seok Hwa Youn, Younghwan Kim, Jae Young Moon, Young Seok Lee, Su Jin Kim, Ho Kyung Sung
BMC Emergency Medicine.2024;[Epub] CrossRef
Impact of the Early COVID-19 Pandemic on Emergency Department Visits of Adult Cancer Patients With Fever or Respiratory Symptoms: A Korean Nationwide Population-Based Study, 2016–2020
Kyung Shin Lee, Ho Kyung Sung, Youn Young Choi, Changwoo Han, Hye Sook Min
Journal of Korean Medical Science.2024;[Epub] CrossRef
Clinical, Demographic Characteristics and Short-Term Prognosis of Cancer Patients Presenting to the Emergency Department
Şimşek Çelik, Pelin Çelik
Bandırma Onyedi Eylül Üniversitesi Sağlık Bilimleri ve Araştırmaları Dergisi.2024; 6(2): 284. CrossRef
Diagnosis of cancer in the Emergency Department: A scoping review
Alix Delamare Fauvel, Jason J. Bischof, Raquel E. Reinbolt, Veronica K. Weihing, Edward W. Boyer, Jeffrey M. Caterino, Henry E. Wang
Cancer Medicine.2023; 12(7): 8710. CrossRef
Factors Influencing Posttraumatic Growth Among Primary Caregivers of Patients with Oncologic Emergencies in Taiwan Intensive Care Units: A Cross-Sectional Study of Patient–Caregiver Dyads
Ya-Hsin Lo, Chih-Hsi Kuo, Ching-Ching Tsai, Shu-Ching Chen
Seminars in Oncology Nursing.2023; 39(5): 151497. CrossRef
Trends in emergency department visits for suicide attempts before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in Korea: A nationwide study, 2016–2021
Seonji Kim, Ho Kyung Sung, Taehui Kim, Sung-keun Ko, SeongJung Kim, Jin-Hee Lee
Journal of Affective Disorders.2023; 331: 184. CrossRef
The severity of clinical symptoms according to cancer diagnosis in fever patients visiting the emergency department: a retrospective analysis
Eun Seam Lee, Purum Kang, You Kyoung Shin, Geun Hee Seol
Journal of Korean Biological Nursing Science.2023; 25(2): 105. CrossRef
Drivers of Emergency Department Use Among Oncology Patients in the Era of Novel Cancer Therapeutics: A Systematic Review
Lauren Fleshner, Andrew Lagree, Audrey Shiner, Marie Angeli Alera, Mateusz Bielecki, Robert Grant, Alex Kiss, Monika K Krzyzanowska, Ivy Cheng, William T Tran, Sonal Gandhi
The Oncologist.2023; 28(12): 1020. CrossRef
Epidemiologic trends of patients who visited nationwide emergency departments: a report from the National Emergency Department Information System (NEDIS) of Korea, 2018–2022
Hyun Ho Yoo, Young Sun Ro, Eunsil Ko, Jin-Hee Lee, So-hyun Han, Taerim Kim, Tae Gun Shin, Seongjung Kim, Hansol Chang
Clinical and Experimental Emergency Medicine.2023; 10(S): S1. CrossRef
Aggressiveness of care in the last days of life in the emergency department of a tertiary hospital in Korea
Jung Sun Kim, Sun Young Lee, Min Sung Lee, Shin Hye Yoo, Jeongmi Shin, Wonho Choi, Yejin Kim, Hyung Sook Han, Jinui Hong, Bhumsuk Keam, Dae Seog Heo
BMC Palliative Care.2022;[Epub] CrossRef
Suicide attempt-related emergency department visits among adolescents: a nationwide population-based study in Korea, 2016–2019
Kyung-Shin Lee, Daesung Lim, Jong-Woo Paik, Youn Young Choi, Jaehyun Jeon, Ho Kyung Sung
BMC Psychiatry.2022;[Epub] CrossRef
The impact of COVID-19 on cancer care in a tertiary hospital in Korea: possible collateral damage to emergency care
Shin Hye Yoo, Jin-Ah Sim, Jeongmi Shin, Bhumsuk Keam, Jun-Bean Park, Aesun Shin
Epidemiology and Health.2022; 44: e2022044. CrossRef
Patient and hospital characteristics predict prolonged emergency department length of stay and in-hospital mortality: a nationwide analysis in Korea
Kyung-Shin Lee, Hye Sook Min, Jae Young Moon, Daesung Lim, Younghwan Kim, Eunsil Ko, You Sun Kim, Joohae Kim, Jeehye Lee, Ho Kyung Sung
BMC Emergency Medicine.2022;[Epub] CrossRef

8,314 View
291 Download
17 Web of Science
18 Crossref

The Fear of Cancer from the Standpoint of Oneself, the Opposite Sex and the Fear of Side Effects of Cancer Treatment: Keeho Park, Youngae Kim, Hyung Kook Yang, Hye Sook Min; Cancer Res Treat. 2020;52(4):993-1001. Published online June 24, 2020; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4143/crt.2020.285

Abstract PDF Supplementary Material PubReader ePub

Purpose
It is important to understand the differences between men and women when it comes to attitudes and risk perception toward disease. This study aimed to explore the fear of cancer from the standpoint of themselves and the opposite sex by cancer type.
Materials and Methods
A cross-sectional survey with a representative sample was conducted.
Results
The least and the most feared cancers in men were thyroid cancer and lung cancer, respectively. When men assumed the perspective of women, the least and the most feared cancer were thyroid cancer and stomach cancer, respectively. The least and the most feared cancers in women were thyroid cancer and stomach cancer, respectively. When women assumed the perspective of men, the least and the most feared cancer were prostate cancer and lung cancer, respectively. When both men and women assume the perspective of the opposite sex, the fear of sex-specific cancer was relatively low compared to the actual responses of both men and women. The top six of the most feared side effects of cancer treatment were pain, psychological problems, general weakness, digestive dysfunction, fatigue, and appearance change. These were the same between men and women.
Conclusion
Health care providers and caregivers in the family should provide care with more attention to the differences in thoughts about cancer between men and women. Health care providers should provide care with more attention to the differences in these problems between men and women.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

“Teetering on a Tightrope”: Uncertainty and Information Management During the Cancer Pre-Diagnosis Phase
Lisa Glebatis Perks, Andrew C. Tollison
Western Journal of Communication.2025; 89(2): 349. CrossRef

8,505 View
191 Download
3 Web of Science
1 Crossref

Supporting Low-income Cancer Patients: Recommendations for the Public Financial Aid Program in the Republic of Korea: Hye Sook Min, Hyung Kook Yang, Keeho Park; Cancer Res Treat. 2018;50(4):1074-1083. Published online November 15, 2017; DOI: https://doi.org/10.4143/crt.2017.401

Abstract PDF PubReader ePub

Purpose
As the recent term of “financial toxicity” implies, cancer causes a treatment-related financial harm. Financial Aid Program for Cancer Patient (FAPCP) is a government’s financial support for low-income patients in the Republic of Korea. This study aimed to describe FAPCP applicants’ condition and to investigate factors influencing financial burden, which would provide the basis for implementing a strategy for FAPCP administration.
Materials and Methods
The telephone survey results from 2,700 FAPCP participants were analyzed, including demographic, socioeconomic, and disease characteristics and experiences associated with financial burden and the actions or measures to cope with them.
Results
Overall, 87.6% experienced financial burden more than moderate degree, 39.2% got financial help/a loan, 17.8% disposed of their property, and 10.2% changed or stopped treatment owing to medical costs. Monthly household income was connected to financial burden, and the highest income group was associated with the lowest financial burden (odds ratio [OR], 0.21; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.11 to 0.38) and the lowest rate of changing/stopping care (OR, 0.23; 95% CI, 0.05 to 1.00). Parents of childhood cancer patients got financial help/a loan (OR, 2.24; 95% CI, 1.03 to 4.88) and disposed of their property (OR, 3.18; 95% CI, 1.40 to 7.22) more frequently, and Medical Aids applicants showed the highest rate of changing/stopping care (OR, 3.01; 95% CI, 1.89 to 4.78).
Conclusion
FAPCP targets low income groups; however, financial burden and the consequent actions taken still exist disproportionately, depending on the income of the applicants. FAPCP should focus on more vulnerable groups including Medical Aid applicants and parents of childhood cancer patients, by increasing funds and expanding their support coverage.

Citations

Citations to this article as recorded by

Navigating the completing cancer treatment incentive in Malaysia: patient insights and implementation challenges
Nur Hidayati Abdul Halim, Nur Azmiah Zainuddin, Farhana Aminuddin, Nurul Athirah Naserrudin, Nor Zam Azihan Mohd Hassan
BMC Health Services Research.2025;[Epub] CrossRef
Psychosocial challenges among Asian adolescents and young adults with cancer: a scoping review
Yihui Wei, Panpan Xiao, Weishang Deng, Cho Lee Wong, Chun-Kit Ngan, Winnie Wan-Yee Tso, Alex Wing-Kwan Leung, Herbert Ho-Fung Loong, Chi Kong Li, Alexandre Chan, Yin Ting Cheung
BMC Cancer.2025;[Epub] CrossRef
Associations of Financial Toxicity with Employment Concerns and Cancer-Related Distress: A Cross-Sectional Survey among Korean Working-Age Cancer Survivors
Hyun-Ju Seo, Dal-Lae Jin, Young Ae Kim, Su Jung Lee, Seok-Jun Yoon
Cancer Research and Treatment.2025; 57(3): 659. CrossRef
Identifying the factors affecting financial toxicity status in patients with middle and advanced colorectal cancer: a cross-sectional study
Xiaofang He, Jie Chen, Lin Zhang, Qiuping Li, Xiaoli Zhu, Jie Zhao, Ying Chen
Frontiers in Public Health.2024;[Epub] CrossRef
Individual and joint effect of socioeconomic status and lifestyle factors on cancer in Korea
Chi Lan Tran, Kui Son Choi, Sun‐Young Kim, Jin‐Kyoung Oh
Cancer Medicine.2023; 12(16): 17389. CrossRef
Financial hardship in families of children or adolescents with cancer: a systematic literature review
Julie Ritter, Savannah Allen, Phillip D Cohen, Andrés Felipe Fajardo, Kelsey Marx, Patrícia Loggetto, Carmen Auste, Hedley Lewis, Karla Emília de Sá Rodrigues, Sharmeen Hussain, Ayomide Omotola, Nancy S Bolous, Harsha Thirumurthy, Beverley M Essue, Eva St
The Lancet Oncology.2023; 24(9): e364. CrossRef
Trends in medical care utilization in patients with cancer: An analysis of real‐world data in a tertiary hospital in Korea, 2014–2019
Jung‐Hyun Won, Tae Kyu Chung, Joochul Lee, Sangwon Yoon, Yoomin Jeon, Howard Lee
Cancer Medicine.2023; 12(22): 21022. CrossRef
Impact of objective financial burden and subjective financial distress on spiritual well-being and quality of life among working-age cancer survivors
Danbee Kang, Ka Ryeong Bae, Jihyun Lim, Nayeon Kim, Sungkeun Shim, Sun Seog Kweon, Hwa Jeong Seo, Juhee Cho
Supportive Care in Cancer.2022; 30(6): 4917. CrossRef
The influence of cross-regional medical treatment on total medical expenses, medical insurance payments, and out-of-pocket expenses of patients with malignant tumors in Chinese low-income areas
Bokai Zhang, Haixin Wang, Hongyu Zhang, Guomei Tian, Ting Zhang, Qi Shi, Jian Liu, Jinpeng Xu, Jingchu Liu, Qunhong Wu, Zheng Kang
Cost Effectiveness and Resource Allocation.2022;[Epub] CrossRef
Financial Toxicity of Cancer Care: An Analysis of Financial Burden in Three Distinct Health Care Systems
Divya A. Parikh, Meera Ragavan, Ritika Dutta, Jeffrey Garnet Edwards, James Dickerson, Debeshi Maitra, Sangeeta Aggarwal, Fa-Chyi Lee, Manali I. Patel
JCO Oncology Practice.2021; 17(10): e1450. CrossRef
Burden of Treatment among Elderly Patients with Cancer: A Scoping Review
Adem Sav, Sara S. McMillan, Adeola Akosile
Healthcare.2021; 9(5): 612. CrossRef
Symptom experiences and health‐related quality of life among non‐small cell lung cancer patients participating in clinical trials
Kyunghwa Lee, Eui Geum Oh, Sanghee Kim, Sang‐We Kim
Journal of Clinical Nursing.2019; 28(11-12): 2111. CrossRef
The Incidences and Characteristics of Various Cancers in Patients on Dialysis: a Korean Nationwide Study
Soon Kil Kwon, Joung-Ho Han, Hye-Young Kim, Gilwon Kang, Minseok Kang, Yeonkook J. Kim, Jinsoo Min
Journal of Korean Medical Science.2019;[Epub] CrossRef
Higher Age Puts Lung Cancer Patients at Risk for Not Receiving Anti-cancer Treatment
Won-Il Choi, Jiah Choi, Mi-Ae Kim, Gyumin Lee, Jihyeon Jeong, Choong Won Lee
Cancer Research and Treatment.2019; 51(3): 1241. CrossRef

9,034 View
130 Download
14 Web of Science
14 Crossref

First
Prev
Page of 1
Next
Last

Search