Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 14, 2026
08:34
Proton Therapy Delivery and Its Clinical Application in Select Solid Tumor Malignancies
Published on: February 6, 2019
Undertreated breast cancer in the elderly.
Manmeet Kaur Malik1, Paul Ian Tartter, Rachel Belfer
1Division of Breast Surgery, Department of Surgery, St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center, New York, NY, USA.
Journal of Cancer Epidemiology
|February 1, 2013
Summary
Elderly women with breast cancer often receive undertreatment with adjuvant therapies. Despite this, their survival outcomes were comparable to younger patients, suggesting a need to re-evaluate treatment standards.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Geriatric Medicine
- Breast Cancer Research
Background:
- Adjuvant therapy is standard for breast cancer, but undertreatment in elderly patients is a concern.
- Older women with breast cancer may have different disease characteristics and treatment patterns compared to younger patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the impact of undertreatment with adjuvant hormonal therapy, chemotherapy, or radiation in elderly women with breast cancer.
- To compare the characteristics and outcomes of undertreated elderly patients with conventionally treated elderly and younger patients.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of a prospectively maintained database (1978-2012).
- Comparison of 382 women over 70 with 2065 younger breast cancer patients.
- Identification and comparison of conventionally treated versus undertreated elderly patients.
Main Results:
- Elderly patients presented with more favorable tumor characteristics (smaller, more favorable histology, higher estrogen receptor positivity).
- Fifty-one percent of elderly patients were undertreated by conventional criteria.
- Undertreated elderly patients had comparable local and distant disease-free survival despite less aggressive treatment.
Conclusions:
- Undertreatment of adjuvant therapies in elderly breast cancer patients is common.
- Favorable tumor biology in elderly patients may contribute to comparable survival outcomes despite undertreatment.
- Current treatment guidelines may need re-evaluation for elderly breast cancer patients.
Related Concept Videos
02:56Treatment Resistant Cancers
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. A cancer cell is genetically unstable and hence can mutate faster. They can also modify their microenvironment and escape immune surveillance. The difficulties in treating cancer are further compounded by the emergence of rapid resistance to anticancer drugs. The most common ways to attain resistance in cancer cells include alteration in drug transport and metabolism, modification of drug target, elevated DNA damage response, or...
01:15Drug Dosing: Geriatric Patients
Elderly individuals encompass a diverse population with varying degrees of age-related physiological changes. Defining the elderly presents challenges, as the geriatric population is often arbitrarily categorized as individuals older than 65. However, many individuals in this group lead active and healthy lives, with an increasing number surpassing 85 years and falling into the older elderly category. Physiological changes associated with aging impact performance capacity and homeostatic...
02:57Targeted Cancer Therapies
The targeted cancer therapies, also known as “molecular targeted therapies,” take advantage of the molecular and genetic differences between the cancer cells and the normal cells. It needs a thorough understanding of the cancer cells to develop drugs that can target specific molecular aspects that drive the growth, progression, and spread of cancer cells without affecting the growth and survival of other normal cells in the body.
There are several types of targeted therapies against specific...
There are several types of targeted therapies against specific...
02:56Treatment Resistent Cancers
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States. A cancer cell is genetically unstable and hence can mutate faster. They can also modify their microenvironment and escape immune surveillance. The difficulties in treating cancer are further compounded by the emergence of rapid resistance to anticancer drugs. The most common ways to attain resistance in cancer cells include alteration in drug transport and metabolism, modification of drug target, elevated DNA damage response, or...