2022 Volume 37 Issue 1 Pages 34-45
Objective：Several welfare policies including long‒term preventive care are being carried out to extend the healthy life expectancy and improve QOL of the older adults in Japan. On the other hand, due to the progress of medicine, radical surgery and salvage treatment are performed on older cancer patients, reducing their QOL after treatment. However, there are no studies on the effects of long‒term preventive care for older patients after cancer treatment. The purpose of this study was to compare older oral cancer patients with older ordinary people, focusing on long‒term preventive care.
Materials and Methods：Sixty‒four older post‒treatment oral cancer patients who visited the Department of Oral Rehabilitation, Showa University Dental Hospital were recruited in this study. The older ordinary people were 4,047 older people in Ota Ward investigated in 2020. A questionnaire survey was done.
Results and Discussion：Older post‒treatment oral cancer patients had a significantly lower Instrumental Activities of Daily Living score than the ordinary older adults in Ota Ward. However, the rate of going out at least once a week was higher and the subjective view of health was significantly higher in the patients. Although the rate of participation in small learning or cultural groups and community activities tends to be higher, the rate of participation in social activities decreased in the patients. In addition, a significant decrease in swallowing function was observed in the patients compared to their function half a year earlier. The decrease of swallowing function may have been due to “accelerated”aging and oral frailty.
Conclusion：It is considered that a support system and program for maintaining oral function and decreasing social distress are needed for older patients after treatment for oral cancer.
