Do older and younger patients derive similar survival benefits from novel oncology drugs? A systematic review and meta-analysis

Chemotherapy Toxicity in Older Adults Optimized by Geriatric Assessment and Intervention: A Non-Comparative Analysis

The Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA) is recommended to guide treatment choices in older patients with cancer. Patients ≥ 70 years referred to our oncology service with a new cancer diagnosis are screened using the G-8. Patients with a score of ≤14 are eligible to attend the Geriatric Oncology and Liaison (GOAL) Clinic in our institution, with referral based on physician discretion. Referred patients undergo multidimensional assessments at baseline. CGA domains assessed include mobility, nutritional, cognitive, and psychological status. Chemotherapy toxicity risk is estimated using the Cancer Aging and Research Group (CARG) calculator. We undertook a retrospective analysis of patients attending the GOAL clinic over a 30-month period to April 2021. The objective was to determine rates of treatment dose modifications, delays, discontinuation, and unscheduled hospitalizations as surrogates for cytotoxic therapy toxicity in these patients. These data were collected retrospectively. Ninety-four patients received chemotherapy; the median age was 76 (70–87) and 45 were female (48%). Seventy-five (80%) had an ECOG PS of 0–1. Seventy-two (77%) had gastrointestinal cancer, and most had stage III (47%) or IV (40%) disease. Chemotherapy with curative intent was received by 51% (n = 48) and 51% received monotherapy. From the CGA, the median Timed Up and Go was 11 s (7.79–31.6), and 90% reported no falls in the prior 6 months. The median BMI was 26.93 (15.43–39.25), with 70% at risk or frankly malnourished by the Mini Nutritional Assessment. Twenty-seven (29%) patients had impaired cognitive function. Forty-three (46%) had a high risk of toxicity based on the baseline CARG toxicity calculator. Twenty-six (28%) required dose reduction, 55% (n = 52) required a dose delay, and 36% (n = 34) had a hospitalization due to toxicity. Thirty-nine patients (42%) discontinued treatment due to toxicity. Despite intensive assessment, clinical optimization and personalized treatment decisions, older adults with cancer remain at high risk of chemotherapy toxicity.

Impact of the Cancer and Aging Research Group score and treatment intensity on survival and toxicity outcomes in older adults with advanced noncolorectal gastrointestinal cancers

BACKGROUND

Little is known regarding the predictive value of the Cancer and Aging Research Group (CARG) score, a validated chemotherapy toxicity prediction tool for older adults with cancer, for survival outcomes.

METHODS

This was a prospective observational study of patients ≥65 years old receiving first-line chemotherapy for advanced noncolorectal gastrointestinal cancer for which combination chemotherapy is the standard of care. Overall survival (OS), time to treatment failure (TTF), which was defined as the time from the start of first-line chemotherapy to the discontinuation of first-line chemotherapy for any reason, and toxicity were compared in 4 groups of patients: 1) non-high-risk (nHR) CARG score (<10) and standard-intensity therapy (ST), 2) nHR score and reduced-intensity therapy (RT), 3) high-risk (HR) CARG score (≥10) and ST, and 4) HR score and RT.

RESULTS

Fifty patients (median age, 71 years) were enrolled. The median OS in months was 19.7 in nHR/ST (n = 19) group, 12.7 in nHR/RT (n = 9) group, 4.5 in HR/ST (n = 12) group, and 3.9 in HR/RT (n = 10) group (log-rank test, P = .005). The median TTF in months was 9.1 in nHR/ST group, 2.5 in nHR/RT group, 2.3 in HR/ST group, and 3.0 in HR/RT group (log-rank test, P = .04). The CARG-score category was prognostic of OS (HR, 3.04; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.59-5.83, P = .001) and TTF (HR, 2.60; 95% CI, 1.31-5.20, P = .007). The incidence of grade 3-5 toxicity was 68% in nHR/ST group, 33% in nHR/RT group, 92% in HR/ST group, and 70% in HR/RT group (Fisher exact test, P = .048).

CONCLUSIONS

Risk-adapted chemotherapy based on the CARG-score may improve treatment outcomes.

Toxicity and antitumor activity of novel agents in elderly patients with cancer included in phase 1 studies

Introduction The number of cancer cases among the elderly continue to increase as the worldwide population ages. This patient subset is underrepresented in clinical trials, partly because of unresolved uncertainties about age-associated tolerabilities and antitumor activities. We reviewed phase 1 trial data to study tolerance and efficacy of novel agents used for treatment of elderly patients with cancer. Methods Data from 773 consecutive evaluable patients in 85 phase 1 clinical trials (2008-2016) at START Madrid-CIOCC were analyzed according to age, with respect to objective response, survival, and toxicity. Results The mean age was 58.7 (range: 18-87) years; 260 (33.6%) patients were >65 y (elderly group). One hundred thirty-seven (17.8%) patients received immunotherapy drugs, 308 (39.8%) received targeted agents, and 328 (42.4%) received chemotherapy. No statistically significant differences in overall survival, objective response, or severe toxicity rates were found according to treatment type. Similar toxicities and clinical activities were found between the two age subgroups; 18.8% of the elderly and 20.7% of the younger patients experienced severe hematological toxicity (p=0.5), and 30.2% and 32.7%, respectively, experienced severe non-hematological toxicity (p=0.4). Regarding antitumor activity, 12.4% of the elderly and 15% of the younger patients achieved objective responses (p=0.41). There were no significant between-group differences in overall survival (9.7 versus 11.5 months, respectively, p=0.1) or progression-free survival (2.3 versus 2.2 months, respectively, p=0.7). Conclusions This retrospective study found that elderly and younger populations had comparable antitumor activities and toxicity profiles. These results support including elderly patients with cancer in early-phase trials.

Optimising Clinical Trial Design in Older Cancer Patients

Cancer is predominantly a disease of older patients, with over half of those aged over 65 years of age being diagnosed with cancer at some stage. Despite comprising a significant proportion of the patients that we see in clinical practice, there is a lack of representation of older patients in cancer clinical trials. This is mainly due to restrictive trial inclusion criteria that prevent older patients from participating. Also, trial endpoints, such as overall survival, may not represent the most important and most meaningful endpoints for older patients. The latter may place more significance on quality of life and other outcomes such as functional independence. Baseline assessment using Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment, may provide a better framework for quantifying patient outcomes for varying degrees of fitness or frailty. This short communication makes the case for more age appropriate endpoints, such as quality of life, toxicity and functional independence, and that novel trial designs are necessary to inform evidence-based care of older cancer patients.