Trial results investigating the expectations and priorities of elderly and young patients undergoing first medical treatment for cancer were posted on ClinicalTrials.gov on 2025-07-01. The study enrolled 346 participants across several cancer types.
Background
Understanding patient priorities is crucial for delivering patient-centered care, especially when initiating first medical treatment for cancer. Elderly patients, defined as 70 years and over in this study, may have different expectations and priorities compared to younger patients (18-69 years) regarding treatment efficacy, life expectancy, autonomy, daily activities, social activities, treatment burden, toxicity, and economic considerations. This study aimed to describe these priorities at the initiation of treatment and after three months.
Trial design
This completed study enrolled 346 participants to describe the priorities of elderly and young patients undergoing a first medical treatment for cancer. The conditions studied included Breast Cancer, Colorectal Cancer, Kidney Cancer, Lung Cancer, and Prostate Cancer. The study's main objective was to describe the prioritization of items from a list of 8 expectations regarding treatment objectives.
Key results
The study collected data on patient priorities at treatment initiation, categorized by age group. The outcome measured was the count of participants prioritizing specific items from a list of expectations regarding their treatment objectives:
- For elderly patients (70 years and older), the counts of participants prioritizing various items were 199, 141, 181, 115, 80, and 47 participants.
- For young patients (18 years - 69 years), the corresponding counts for these priorities were 93, 80, 67, 44, 47, and 17 participants.
What this means
The results highlight that patient priorities at the initiation of cancer treatment vary, and these variations are observed between elderly and young patient groups. The distinct counts for each age group underscore the importance of individualized discussions about treatment goals, considering the patient's age and their specific expectations regarding aspects such as treatment efficacy, quality of life, and potential side effects. Clinicians can use such data to tailor communication and treatment plans to better align with patient values and improve shared decision-making.
Source
The information regarding these trial results was obtained from ClinicalTrials.gov, a public database of clinical studies. The results for study NCT02821793, titled "Expectations and Priorities of Elderly Patients for a First Medical Treatment for Cancer", were posted on 2025-07-01 on clinicaltrials.gov.