Treating elderly patients with stage III NSCLC

摘要

The epidemic of lung cancer mainly affects elderly men and women worldwide. With a mean age at diagnosis of 70 years, more older people die annually from lung cancer than from any other malignancy. Thistrend is expected to worsen with projected population ageing. Unfortunately, the care received by older patients with lung cancer is often suboptimum. Poor functional status, coexisting illnesses, limited life expectancy, and physicians' concerns about toxicity and the effect of treatment on quality of life often limits use of chemotherapy and radiotherapy in elderly patients. This practice pattern is aggravated by the overwhelming lack of evidence from randomised controlled trials (RCTs) focused specifically on older patients. Improving the care of this vulnerable population has become a key priority among lung cancer specialists.