Abstract
Background and objective: Elderly and/or frail women with ovarian cancer are often undertreated. The aim of the study is to compare the effects of age and frailty on surgical approaches, postoperative complications, and prognosis in elderly women with ovarian cancer. Methods: A retrospective multicenter study of women ≥70 years were treated for ovarian cancer at seven French university hospitals between 2007 and 2015. Results: Of the 1119 women treated for ovarian cancer during the study period, 147 were ≥70 years and had complete data. Of these women, 65 were aged 70–74 years, and 82 were aged ≥75 years. Overall, 77% of the younger women (49/65) received optimal treatment compared with 51% (40/82) of the older women (p = 0.018). Women ≥75 years underwent fewer bowel resections (32% vs. 67%, p < 0.001) and experienced fewer postoperative complications (22.6% vs. 38.9%, p < 0.001); 53.2% of the women in this age group were treated by primary surgery or surgery only. These women also received more chemotherapy with platinum only (15% [9/56] vs. 2% [1/57], p = 0.007) and less bevacizumab (9% [5/56] vs. 32% [18/57], p = 0.003). Patients with greater frailty (a modified Charlson Comorbidity Index [mCCI] score >3) had a five-year survival rate of 30% versus 62% for those with a score ≤3 (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Surgeons modify their approach to treating ovarian cancer in women ≥75 years probably to reduce immediate postoperative complications. The prognosis is significantly worse in patients with greater frailty. Improvements to the sequence of treatments administered, with priority given to neoadjuvant chemotherapy in patients with greater frailty, could help increase the number of women who receive optimal treatment and improve their prognosis.