Geriatric Assessments Could Fine-Tune Cancer Care For Older Adults

Geriatric Assessments Could Fine-Tune Cancer Care For Older Adults
Doctor talking to a patient (National Cancer Institute (NCI)/Wikicommons)
|Updated:

In a move to improve cancer care for older adults, the American Society of Clinical Oncology is recommending that all patients age 65 and older receive a geriatric assessment when considering or undergoing chemotherapy.

The goal is to better identify which patients can tolerate intensive chemotherapy, and which patients may need modified treatment regimens because of underlying conditions, such as cognitive impairment, that often go undetected by oncologists.

Judith Graham
Judith Graham
Author
Judith Graham is a contributing columnist for Kaiser Health News, which originally published this article. KHN’s coverage of these topics is supported by The John A. Hartford Foundation, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and The SCAN Foundation.