Management of Cancer in the Older Adult

摘要

Cancer is primarily a disease of the elderly. According to the National Cancer institute's Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) data, between the years 2003 and 2008 the median age at diagnosis for cancer of all sites was 66 years of age, with 54% of all cancers and 69.5% of all cancer deaths occurring in patients aged 65 years or older. With a steady increase in the average life expectancy and with the recent transition of the Baby Boomers into the over-65 age group, there has been a rapid rise in the elderly population. These statistics portend a growing number of older persons who will succumb to various cancers.