(A562) Impact of Spanish language preference on mental health care access in head and neck cancer

Monday, October 13, 2025

12:00 PM - 1:00 PM EDT

Location: OTO EXPO, Posters

Presenting Author(s)

VY

Victoria X. Yu, MD

Head and Neck Fellow
University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States
Matthew D. A Spence, BA

Medical Student
Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons
New York, New York, United States

Co-Author(s)

QR

Quilvio A. Rodriguez, DNP, PMHNP-BC, C-DBT, HNB-BC

Columbia University Irving Medical Center, United States
BM

Benjamin L. May, BS

Columbia University Irving Medical Center, United States
CH

Catherine Han, MD

Resident Physician
New York Presbyterian Hospital (Columbia Cornell Campus)
New York, New York, United States
KH

Khadine Harrow, NP

Columbia University Irving Medical Center, United States
Salvatore M. Caruana, MD

Director , Division of Head and Neck Surgery
Columbia University
Sparkill, New York, United States
AP

Anuraag S. Parikh, MD

Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology
Columbia University Irving Medical Center
New York, New York, United States
IS

Ian J. Sadler, MD

Columbia University Irving Medical Center, United States

Senior Author(s)

ST

Scott H. Troob, MD

Fellow, Head and Neck Surgery
Columbia University Irving Medical Center
Portland, Oregon, United States

Disclosure(s):

Victoria X. Yu, MD: No relevant relationships to disclose.

Matthew D. A Spence, BA: No relevant relationships to disclose.

Catherine Han, MD: No relevant relationships to disclose.

Salvatore M. Caruana, MD: No relevant relationships to disclose.

Anuraag S. Parikh, MD: No relevant relationships to disclose.

Introduction: Across various cancer types, Hispanic cancer patients report worse psychosocial well-being compared to those of other ethnicities. We examine whether language barrier contributes to this among head and neck cancer (HNC) patients. Specifically, we hypothesize that Spanish language preference is associated with lower utilization of mental health care services among HNC patients.

Methods: This is a single-institution retrospective cohort study. Inclusion criteria are: 1) an encounter with a HNC ICD-10 code (mucosal, salivary, cutaneous, endocrine, sinonasal, neuroendocrine) and 2) an encounter with specified surgeons and oncologists, between February 1, 2020 and January 24, 2025. Data regarding demographics and mental health care use were extracted from the medical record. Two-tailed Fisher’s exact tests were performed. Multivariate analysis is ongoing.

Results: 3,728 HNC patients were included. 323 (8.7%) listed Spanish as their preferred language. Overall, 670 (18.0%) patients had mental illness diagnoses, including pre-existing and cancer-related ones. Spanish-preferring patients were more likely to have mental illness diagnoses than non-Spanish-preferring patients (22.6% v 17.5%, p = 0.0277). However, Spanish-preferring patients were not more likely to have completed a visit with any mental health care provider (3.1% Spanish-preferring v 3.4% non-Spanish-preferring, p = 1.0000) or a designated psycho-oncology provider (2.5% v 2.4%, p = 0.8504) within our health system.
Additionally, in the study period, 321 patients received psychiatry referrals, 47 (14.6%) of whom were Spanish-preferring. The hiring of a Spanish-speaking psycho-oncology provider in 2023 did not significantly increase the proportion of referred patients who were Spanish-preferring (12.2% pre-hiring v 18.2% post-hiring, p = 0.1501).

Conclusions: Our initial univariate analysis suggests discordance between the prevalence of mental illness diagnoses and mental health care utilization among HNC patients, which is more pronounced in the Spanish-preferring population.