[Malignant tumors in a Japanese geriatric hospital]

We studied the cases of 909 patients with malignant tumors (497 men and 412 women) who were admitted to Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital from April 1994 to July 1995. The mean age was 78.6 years (range: 60 to 103 years). The most common tumors were gastric cancer, colo-rectal cancer, and lung cancer. However, the most common tumors in those who died (n = 263) were gastric cancer, lung cancer, and liver cancer. In 425, abnormalities were found during routine health checks or incidental laboratory examinations, while the patients were asymptomatic. On the first admission, 23.4% were found distant metastases. The rate of complications with other diseases was 82.3%. About one third (31.2%) were informed of their situation, and 18.5% had not received any treatment for their malignancies. In 63%, performance status at the time of discharge was the same as that measured on admission or better.