Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the study was to determine whether older patients with metastatic cancer continue to take medications for the treatment of pre-existing co-morbidities after the diagnosis of metastatic disease.
Methods
Between November 2008 and June 2009, patients over the age of 65 with metastatic cancer were interviewed. Medical records were reviewed in order to ascertain current medication use and relevant past medical history. Classes of medication of interest were prospectively defined; these were anti-hypertensives, lipid-lowering drugs, anti-platelet agents, anti-coagulants and bisphosphonates.
Results
One hundred patients were recruited, with a median age of 73.5 years (range 65–88); 52% were women. The primary cancer sites were breast, 36%; prostate, 27%; colon, 14%; other, 23%. The median performance status of the patients was 2. The median number of medications was 7 (range 1–17). Eighty-one percent of patients were found to be taking one or more of the predefined medications for treatment of a long-term co-morbidity. Overall 52% of patients had side effects attributed to these medications.
Conclusions
Patients with metastatic cancer continue to take drugs for prevention of co-morbidities which are associated with side effects and inconvenience. The benefits of these drugs are likely to be minimal, and medication reviews should be undertaken to address their appropriateness.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the consultants and registrars in the outpatient clinics for their help in recruiting patients. Also thanks to the other staff at the Sussex Cancer Centre and Eastbourne Hospital, particularly the nurses and health care assistants, for helping to organise time and space for interviews, and the Oncology Secretaries for their help in finding patient details and notes. Finally, this work would not have been possible without the patients who agreed to be interviewed, and their families.
Ethical approval
Ethical approval was obtained from Brighton East Research Ethics Committee (08/H1107/107) and by local research and development departments: 08S 012 RIN (Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals), T 08-36 (East Sussex Hospitals Trust). All participants gave informed consent.
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Cashman, J., Wright, J. & Ring, A. The treatment of co-morbidities in older patients with metastatic cancer. Support Care Cancer 18, 651–655 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-010-0813-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-010-0813-1