Biological Aging and Chemotoxicity in Patients with Colorectal Cancer: A Secondary Data Analysis Using EHR Data

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Oncology
• Biochemistry

Background:

• Biological aging impacts cancer outcomes, but its dynamics during chemotherapy and relation to chemotoxicity in colorectal cancer (CRC) are understudied.
• Levine Phenotypic Age (LPA) is a measure of biological aging.
• Understanding these factors is crucial for improving CRC patient care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine biological aging trajectories during chemotherapy in CRC patients.
• To identify risk factors associated with biological aging.
• To determine the link between biological aging and chemotoxicity.

Main Methods:

• Utilized electronic health records (EHRs) from 1129 adult CRC patients (2013-2019).
• Calculated LPA and age acceleration from routine blood tests.
• Identified chemotoxicity using ICD codes.

Main Results:

• Chemotherapy accelerated biological aging over time in CRC patients.
• Both baseline LPA and its changes predicted chemotoxicity, with changes showing stronger association.
• Accelerated biological aging was linked to advanced cancer stage, comorbidities, and socioeconomic disadvantage.

Conclusions:

• Levine Phenotypic Age from EHR blood tests is a feasible tool for stratifying chemotoxicity risk.
• Biological aging occurs in both younger and older adults.
• Further validation and predictive model development are necessary.