Glioblastoma treatment may need adjustment for over 65s

Glioblastoma, the most common form of brain cancer and the type that Senator Edward Kennedy was diagnosed with (Ted Kennedy works through his incurable brain cancer) may require different treatment when it strikes people over the age of 65 years.

According to a new study published in the Annals of Neurology, new treatment decisions may have to be made for seniors with this type of cancer because they tend to have more serious side effects compared with younger people and their life expectancy is shorter as well.

The press release, issued by the publisher says that researchers reviewed the:

Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) cancer registry to gather information on 4,137 on patients who were at least 65 years old and were diagnosed with glioblastoma between 1994 and 2002. They evaluated the associations of demographic characteristics (age, gender, race, marital status and residence in a metropolitan versus non-metropolitan county) and co-existing health conditions with the probability of undergoing surgery, radiation and chemotherapy to treat the tumor.

The results showed that 61 percent of the patients underwent surgery, and that black patients had surgery less often than white patients. Radiation was performed in 65 percent of patients, while only 10 percent underwent chemotherapy. Patients who were older, unmarried and had additional health issues were less likely to receive radiation or chemotherapy within three months of diagnosis. The median survival for elderly patients was only four months.

The study showed that age was the most significant factor in predicting whether a patient received treatment, with older age associated with lower odds of undergoing surgery, radiation or chemotherapy. The authors attribute this to the fact that physicians may be concerned about increased toxic side effects or complications from treatment in elderly patients. “Another possibility is that elderly patients may decline more invasive and aggressive treatments because therapies are only palliative and may prolong life only for a short time,” the authors note, although the study did not evaluate this aspect. Although the reasons for the difference in surgery rates between blacks and whites are not clear, the authors speculate that blacks may have been more likely to have health conditions that made them poor candidates for surgery or may be more averse to having surgery than whites.

This is an important finding that may lead to a better understanding for glioblastoma treatment.

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