Researchers at Harvard University’s Medical School, U.S., have found that though older patients are less liable to receive chemotherapy, when they do get treated, they face lesser side effects as the doses are less noxious and given for smaller time-frame contrary to younger patients.
Lead researcher, Dr. Robert Fletcher, Harvard Medical School said, “Clinical trials have shown that surgery with chemotherapy helps patients live longer than surgery alone but it is not an option always open to the elderly.”
675 patients studied
The research team examined 675 advanced colon
cancer patients, both young and old, undergoing surgery from cross-section medical centers in America in the years 2003 to 2005.
Of the 473 young patients, 87 percent received chemotherapy, whereas 101 of the 202 older patients aged 75 and over received the treatment.
Also, just 14 percent of the older group was given oxaliplatin--platinum based drugs, compared to 44 percent of younger patients.
The subjects were observed for 15 months post surgery.
The motive behind the test was to ascertain if the elderly could endure the therapy and also to see if it was beneficial.
Results of the study
The researchers noted that of the chemotherapy receivers, many did not adhere to the six months course.
They revealed that 25 percent of the younger group suspended their treatment by the 150-day mark; the percentage was 40 in case of people over 65, which emphasized on age bias.
Concurrently, 18 percent received less than advised measures of the medicine.
It was further found that though patients over 75 suffered harmful effects at the early stage of the therapy, the effects shortly reduced as the treatment progressed.
The researchers also observed that 24 percent of the subjects experienced at least one side effect during the study and the negative consequences were twofold in case of surgery plus chemotherapy when compared to surgery alone.
Dr. Katherine L. Kahn, Rand Corporation and member of UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center said, “We don’t know whether we can generalize our results to all older people, because we still have limited information.”
Dr. Frank A. Sinicrope, professor of medicine and oncology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota said, “More research and studies specifically looking at elderly populations would be beneficial to have.”
The study appears in the Journal of American Medical Association.
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