Breast cancer treatment in women over the age of 80 remains a complex issue due to pre-existing comorbidities, therapy-related toxicities, and the lack of evidence-based data in this population, leading to both overtreatment and under treatment. The average life expectancy of an 80-year-old woman is 9.7 years and chronologic age alone should not be a factor in withholding therapy. Women over age 80 should be treated on an individual basis, taking into account their overall health and life expectancy, their risk of dying from breast cancer versus other causes, and the benefits versus toxicities of therapies for their tumor. Invaluable online tools are readily available to easily assess life expectancy (ePrognosis), as well as the absolute survival benefits for every tumor type and stage in individual patients (PREDICT, Ajuvant!). This information should be presented to the patient so that they are able to make an informed decision based on their goals, wishes and quality of life. Vulnerable patients should not be bullied or scared into taking unwanted or unnecessary treatments.
Breast cancer treatment in women over the age of 80: A tailored approach.
R. Glaser,S. Marinopoulos,C. Dimitrakakis
Published 2018 in Maturitas
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- Publication year
2018
- Venue
Maturitas
- Publication date
2018-04-01
- Fields of study
Medicine
- Identifiers
- External record
- Source metadata
Semantic Scholar, PubMed
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