[Side effects of oncology drugs in elderly patients]

Cancer is a disease of old age with approximately 50% of new cancer cases occurring in humans aged 65 years and older and this number is expected to rise to 58% by 2030. Chemotherapy remains a standard part of cancer treatment, alongside new therapies such as immunotherapy and targeted therapies. However, older patients are at increased risk of chemotherapy-induced toxicity compared to younger adults. Various pharmacological parameters must be taken into account in the oncological treatment of older patients. Assessing age-related conditions that affect tolerability with geriatric evaluation is very important when planning chemotherapy. Several studies have shown that geriatric assessment variables can be used to identify older adults who are most at risk of severe toxicity from chemotherapy. Oral oncological therapies present several advantages. However, they also contain disadvantages, especially in older patients, which can lead to poorer efficiency or earlier discontinuation of therapy. Despite the physiological phenomena of immunosenescence and inflammaging, the data, mainly coming from subgroup analysis of meta-analyses, tends to show that immunotherapy is effective and well-tolerated even in older patients.