2024 Volume 50 Issue 3 Pages 89-95
Elderly cancer patients need to be evaluated from multiple perspectives, taking into account not only age-related decline in physical, organ, and cognitive functions, but also psycho-psychological and socioeconomic factors. The Cancer and Aging Reserch Group (CARG) score comprehensively scores the functional assessment items in the elderly, and it has been reported overseas that the CARG score was able to predict the incidence of serious adverse effects of chemotherapy. However, in Japan, functional assessment of elderly patients with cancer has not yet been fully implemented in clinical practice. Therefore, we investigated the prediction of serious side effects of chemotherapy by the CARG score in elderly patients with colorectal cancer and their impact on treatment. The treatment continuation rate due to overall side effects was significantly shorter in patients with a CARG score of 10 or higher. The continuation rates of treatment for hematologic toxicity and non-hematologic toxicity were also significantly shorter in patients with a score of 10 or higher. Thus, the CARG score is expected to be useful in predicting serious side effects in elderly Japanese cancer patients and will contribute to supporting treatment when the CARG score is used in daily practice.
