Outcomes in older adults with metastatic esophageal and gastric carcinoma treated with palliative chemotherapy

Abstract

Abstract Background The incidence of esophageal and gastric carcinoma (GEC) in elderly patients is increasing, yet patients ≥75 years have historically been underrepresented in clinical trials. We sought to investigate palliative chemotherapy administration patterns and survival outcomes in older adults. Materials and Methods A retrospective analysis identified patients aged 65-74 (young-old) and ≥75 years (older-old) diagnosed with advanced GEC. Patient and tumor characteristics were recorded, with descriptive analysis, time-to-event data analysis using Kaplan-Meier curves and multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analysis performed. Results One hundred and ninety-eight “young-old” and 109 ‘older-old’ patients were identified. Patient characteristics were similar between groups except for Charlson Co-morbidity Index (CCI), with lower co-morbidities in the “young-old” compared to “older-old” cohort (P < .001; CCI = 0 in 103 (52%) “young-old” vs 31 (28%) “older-old”). The primary diagnosis in both groups was adenocarcinoma. 119 (60%) “young-old” and 25 (23%) “older-old” patients received chemotherapy (P < .001). Performance status was the primary explanation for chemotherapy non-receipt in both cohorts; age was the explanation in 21 (25%) “older-old” patients and none in the “young-old” patients. PFS for first-line systemic therapy in “young-old” patients was 6.4 (95% CI 5.9-7.6) versus 7.5 months (95% CI 5.1-11.3) in “older-old” patients (P = .69) whilst respective OS was 12.3 (95% CI 10.1-15.5) and 10.4 months (95% CI 9.0-14.6) (P = .0816). Toxicity prompted chemotherapy cessation in 17 (15%) “young-old” and 3 (13%) “older-old” patients (P = .97). Multivariate analysis identified CCI and ECOG performance status as predictive for PFS and OS, respectively. No causative relationship was identified with other variables. Conclusion Our study of real-world older-adults show that significant number of “older-old” patients with GEC do not receive chemotherapy. Among “older-old” adults who do receive systemic therapy, outcomes are comparable; this underscores the importance of geriatric assessment-guided care and suggests that age alone should not be a barrier to receipt of chemotherapy in patients with advanced GEC.