Abstract
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Cancer patients using implanted venous access devices (ICVADs) for chemotherapy are at increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE), but the performance of risk assessment models (RAMs) in this setting is understudied. This study evaluated VTE incidence, risk factors, and the predictive performance of the Khorana, COMPASS-CAT, and ONKOTEV models. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed records of adult cancer patients treated with chemotherapy via ICVADs. The cumulative incidence (CI) of VTEs was estimated using the Fine-Gray method, and RAM performance was assessed by sensitivity, specificity, predictive values, accuracy, and AUC. Overall survival (OS) was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier and log-rank tests. RESULTS: A total of 446 patients were included. The most common cancers were colorectal (29.6%), gastric (26%), pancreatic (18.4%), and breast (13.9%). During a median follow-up of 16.5 months, VTEs occurred in 82 patients (18.4%), including 43 (9.6%) that were ICVAD-related. Median time to VTE was 117 days and 68 days for ICVAD-related events. The CI of VTEs was 9% at 1 year and 18.4% at 2 years. ONKOTEV showed the best performance (accuracy of 74.4%, specificity of 85.7%, and AUC of 0.607), with 1-year incidence higher in the high-risk group (28.5% vs. 12.4%, p < 0.001). In contrast, all RAMs showed limited ability for ICVAD-related VTEs. VTE was independently associated with inferior OS (HR 1.39, p = 0.037). CONCLUSIONS: Cancer patients with ICVADs face a substantial risk of early VTEs. Among evaluated RAMs, ONKOTEV performed best for overall but not ICVAD-related events. Prospective studies are needed to guide prophylaxis strategies using validated RAMs.