Confidence Intervals Elizabeth S. Garrett Oncology Biostatistics March 27, 2002 Clinical Trials in 20 Hours

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours2 What is a “confidence interval”? It is an interval that tells the precision with which we have estimated a sample statistic. Examples: –parameter of interest: progression-free survival time: “The 95% confidence interval on progression-free survival is 13 to 26 weeks.” –parameter of interest: response rate “The 95% confidence interval on response rate is 0.20 to 0.40.” –Parameter of interest: change in %CD34+ cells “The 95% confidence interval for %CD34+ cells is 0.2 to 0.4.”

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours3 Different Interpretations of the 95% confidence interval “ We are 95% sure that the TRUE parameter value is in the 95% confidence interval” “If we repeated the experiment many many times, 95% of the time the TRUE parameter value would be in the interval” “Before performing the experiment, the probability that the interval would contain the true parameter value was 0.95.”

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours4 Example Leisha Emens, M.J. Kennedy, John H. Fetting, Nancy E. Davidson, Elizabeth Garrett, Deborah A. Armstrong “A phase 1 toxicity and feasibility trial of sequential dose dense induction chemotherapy with doxorubicin, paclitaxel, and 5-fluorouracil followed by high dose consolidation for high risk primary breast cancer” 83 patients underwent leukopheresis for peripheral blood stem cell collection after conventional dose adjuvant therapy, and 14 patients underwent the procedure on the dose dense adjuvant protocol Results: Compared to the standard dose doxorubicin-containing adjuvant therapy, the dose dense regimen decreased CD34+ peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) yields, requiring that 50% patients have a supplemental bone marrow harvest. Question: What can we say about how %CD34+ peripheral blood stem cell yields in each of the two groups?

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours5 Example %CD34+ PBSC in trial 9601 and We can estimate the mean %CD34+ PBSC in each trial: –0.40 in the standard group –0.30 in the dose-dense group. We can conclude: –“We estimate that %CD34+ PBSC in the standard group is 0.40 and in the dose dense group is 0.30.” But, how “sure” are we about those estimates?

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours6 Quantifying Uncertainty Standard deviation: measures the variation of a variable in the population. –The standard deviation of %CD34+ PBSC in the standard group is 0.27 and is 0.20 in the dose dense group. –Technically,

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours7 For normally distributed variables…. s 68% 68% of individuals’ values fall between  1 standard deviation of the mean

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours8 For normally distributed variables…. 95% of individuals’ values fall between  1.96 standard deviations of the mean 1.96s 95%

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours9 Standard deviation versus standard error The standard deviation (s) describes variability between individuals in a population. The standard error describes variation of a sample statistic. Example: We are interested in the mean %CD34+ PBSC. (We notate the mean by x). –The standard deviation (0.27 in standard and 0.20 in dose dense) describes how individuals differ. –The standard error of the mean describes the precision with which can make inference about the true mean.

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours10 Standard error of the mean Standard error of the mean (sem): Comments: –n = sample size –even for large s, if n is large, we can get good precision for sem –always smaller than standard deviation (s)

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours11 Example In standard group, s = 0.27 and n = 83: In dose dense group, s = 0.20 and n = 14:

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours12 Sampling Distribution The sampling distribution of a sample statistic refers to what the distribution of the statistic would look like if we chose a large number of samples from the same population Mean = 3 s = 2.45 The sample statistic of interest to us is the mean.

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours13 Sampling Distribution of the Mean By the Central Limit Theorem, it is true that even if a variable is NOT normally distributed, for large sample size, the sampling distribution of the mean is normally distributed. Mean = 3 s = 2.45

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours14 Sampling Distributions sem = 0.47 sem = 0.10 sem = 0.23 sem = 0.47

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours15 Central Limit Theorem Main Ideas The sampling distribution of a sample statistic is often normally distributed The mathematical result comes from the Central Limit Theorem. For the theorem to work, n should be large. Statisticians have derived formulas to calculate the standard deviation of the sampling distribution and it is called the standard error of the statistic

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours16 Sampling Distribution of the Mean In general for large n, means have a normal distribution. It is true that 95% of sample means will be within  1.96 of the true mean, . The 95% confidence interval for the mean

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours17 General formula for 95% confidence interval Notes: –sample size must be sufficiently large for non- normal variables. –how large is large? depends on skewness of variable –VERY often people use 2 instead of 1.96.

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours18 Example In the standard group, the mean was 0.40, s = 0.27, and n = 83: In the dose dense group, the mean was 0.30, s = 0.20, and n = 14:

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours19 Not only 95%…. 90% confidence interval: NARROWER than 95% 99% confidence interval: WIDER than 95%

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours20 But why do we always see 95% CI’s? “ Duality” between confidence intervals and pvalues Example: Assume that we are testing that for a significant change in QOL due to an intervention, where QOL is measured on a scale from 0 to 50. –95% confidence interval: (-2, 13) –pvalue = 0.07 It is true that if the 95% confidence interval overlaps 0, then a t-test testing that the treatment effect is 0 will be insignificant at the alpha = 0.05 level. It is true that if the 95% confidence interval does not overlap 0, then a t-test testing that the treatment effect is 0 will be significant at the alpha = 0.05 level.

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours21 Other Confidence Intervals Differences in means Response rates Differences in response rates Hazard ratios median survival difference in median survival ……..

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours22 Difference in Means Example: What is the 95% confidence interval for the difference in %CD34+ PBSCs in the two trials?

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours23 95% Confidence Intervals for Proportions Socinski et al., Phase III Trial Comparing a Defined Duration of Therapy versus Continuous Therapy Followed by Second-Line Therapy in Advanced-Stage IIIB/IV Non-Small-Cell Lung Cancer JCO, March 1, Patients and Methods: Arm A (4 cycles of carboplatin at an AUC of 6 and paclitaxel), Arm B (continuous treatment with carboplatin/ paclitaxel until progression). At progression, patients from each arm receive second-line weekly paclitaxel at 80mg/m2/week. Results: 230 Patients were randomized (114 in arm A and 116 in Arm B). Overall response rates were 22% and 24% for arms A and B. Grade 2 to 4 neuropathy was seen in 14% and 27% of Arm A and B patients, respectively.

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours24 95% Confidence Intervals for Proportions What are 95% confidence intervals for the response rates in the two arms? standard error of a sample proportion is An equation for confidence interval for a proportion: Note: this is an approximation based on the central limit theorem! Using statistical programs, you can get “exact” confidence intervals. Assumptions: –n is reasonably large –p is not “too” close to 0 or 1 –rule of thumb: pn > 5

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours25 Example: Response Rate to Treatment Arm A: Arm B:

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours26 Example: Grade 2 to 4 Neuropathy Arm A: Arm B:

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours27 95% Confidence Interval for Difference in Proportions What is the 95% confidence interval for the difference in rates of neuropathy in arms A and B?

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours28 Recap 95% confidence intervals are used to quantify certainty about parameters of interest. Confidence intervals can be constructed for any parameter of interest (we have just looked at some common ones). The general formulas shown here rely on the central limit theorem You can choose level of confidence (does not have to be 95%). Confidence intervals are often preferable to pvalues because they give a “reasonable range” of values for a parameter.

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours29 Some Confidence Intervals in Survival Analysis Hazard Ratio95% CI Chemo v. surgery Arm 1Arm II %95%CI%95%CI 1 year survival year survival What about the confidence interval for the 1 year and 3 year difference? Example: Urba et al. Randomized Trial of Preoperative Chemoradiation Versus Surgery Alone in Patients with Locoregional Esophageal Carcinoma, JCO, Jan 15, 2001.

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours30 Why not provide confidence intervals for... –Difference in median survival –Difference in 1 year survival –Difference in 3 year survival Would give readers a “reasonable range” of values to consider for treatment effect that are intuitive. What is remembered? –P = 0.09 which means insignificant result –But, can anyone remember the treatment effect?

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours31 Confidence Intervals for Reporting Results of Clinical Trials, Simon “[Hypothesis tests] are sometimes overused and their results misinterpreted.” “Confidence intervals are of more than philosophical interest, because their broader use would help eliminate misinterpretations of published results.” “Frequently, a significance level or pvalue is reduced to a ‘significance test’ by saying that if the level is greater than 0.05, then the difference is ‘not significant’ and the null hypothesis is ‘not rejected’….The distinction between statistical significance and clinical significance should not be confused.”

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours32 Caveats “They should not be interpreted as reflecting the absence of a clinically important difference in true response probabilities.”

3/27/2002Clinical Trials in 20 Hours33 Excellent References on Use of Confidence Intervals in Clinical Trials Richard Simon, “Confidence Intervals for Reporting Results of Clinical Trials”, Annals of Internal Medicine, v.105, 1986, Leonard Braitman, “Confidence Intervals Extract Clinically Useful Information from the Data”, Annals of Internal Medicine, v. 108, 1988, Leonard Braitman, “Confidence Intervals Assess Both Clinical and Statistical Significance”, Annals of Internal Medicine, v. 114, 1991,