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Has lung cancer in the elderly different characteristics at presentation?
Maurizio Montella1, Cesare Gridelli, Anna Crispo
1Unit of Epidemiology, National Cancer Institute, G. Pascale Foundation, Via M. Semmola, 80131 Naples, Italy. epidemiologia.int@tin.it
Oncology Reports
|August 9, 2002
Summary
Elderly lung cancer patients do not present with different disease characteristics like stage or performance status compared to younger patients. However, co-morbidities and organ function may differ between age groups.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Geriatric Medicine
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Lung cancer is a leading cause of cancer mortality globally.
- Elderly patients are often perceived to have poorer prognostic indicators at diagnosis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if age at diagnosis influences the presentation characteristics of lung cancer patients.
- To compare disease stage, performance status, and histology between younger and elderly lung cancer cohorts.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of 1,035 lung cancer patients.
- Categorization of patients into two age groups: young (<=70 years) and old (>70 years).
- Statistical analysis using chi-squared trend test, odds ratios, and multiple logistic regression.
Main Results:
- No statistically significant difference in performance status between younger and elderly lung cancer patients (OR=1.1, 95%CI 0.8-1.5).
- Similar findings for small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) subtypes regarding performance status and stage.
- Elderly patients did not present with different disease stages or histological types compared to younger patients.
Conclusions:
- Age at diagnosis does not appear to significantly alter the presenting characteristics (stage, performance status, histology) of lung cancer.
- Differences in co-morbidities and organ function may exist between elderly and younger lung cancer patient populations, warranting further investigation.