Abstract
Background and objective(s) Pancreatic cancer remains a significant contributor to cancer-related mortality in the United States, with notable racial disparities in both incidence and mortality rates. This study aimed to investigate potential racial disparities in pancreatic cancer mortality across different racial/ethnic groups in the United States by using the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database of 2016-2020. Methods Using data from the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database, we identified 32,357 individuals aged 18 years and older with a primary diagnosis of pancreatic cancer between 2016 and 2020. The sample was weighted to be nationally representative. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to examine the association between race/ethnicity and pancreatic cancer mortality, adjusting for potential confounding factors such as age, gender, and patient location. Results Among the study population, 72.11% were White individuals, 14.48% were Black/African American individuals, 9.38% were Hispanic individuals, 3.67% were Asian/Pacific Islander individuals, and 0.36% were Native American individuals. Black/African American individuals demonstrated significantly higher odds of mortality compared to White individuals (adjusted odds ratio (OR)=1.339, 95% CI: 1.324-1.478, p < 0.0001). Asian/Pacific Islander individuals also exhibited higher odds of mortality (adjusted (OR)=1.442, 95% CI: 1.308-1.590, p < 0.0001). No statistically significant differences were observed for Hispanic or Native American individuals compared to White individuals. Conclusions This study provided evidence of racial disparities in pancreatic cancer mortality, with Black/African American and Asian/Pacific Islander individuals facing significantly higher odds of mortality compared to White individuals. These findings underscored the need for targeted interventions and policies to address these inequities and promote health equity in pancreatic cancer outcomes.