cepia

Clinical Epidemiology and Ageing

[Comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) in elderly with cancer: For whom?].

Liuu E, Caillet P, Curé H, Anfasi N, De Decker L, Pamoukdjian F, Canoui-Poitrine F, Soubeyran P, Paillaud E Rev Med Interne. 2016;37(7):480-8.

<p>Scientific societies recommend the implementation of a comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) in cancer patients aged 70 and older. The EGA is an interdisciplinary multidimensional diagnostic process seeking to assess the frail older person in order to develop a coordinated plan of treatment and long-term follow-up. Identification of comorbidities and age-induced physiological changes that may increase the risk of anticancer treatment toxicities is essential to better assess the risk-benefit ratio in elderly cancer patients. The systematic implementation of a CGA for each patient is difficult to perform in daily practice. Therefore, it is recommended to screen vulnerable patients who will benefit from a complete CGA. Our work presents the vulnerability screening tools validated by at least two independent studies in a cancer elderly population setting. Among seven screening tools, the G8 and the VES13 are the most effective, and have been validated specifically in older population with cancer. The G8 is recommended by scientific societies and the French National Cancer Institute (INCa) because of its easy implementation in daily clinical practice, its high sensitivity and fair specificity. Although studies are underway to improve its performance, the G8 is currently the simplest tool to routinely identify older cancer patients who should have a complete assessment in geriatric oncology.</p>

MeSH terms: Aged; Geriatric Assessment; Humans; Mass Screening; Neoplasms; Reproducibility of Results; Risk Assessment; Sensitivity and Specificity
DOI: 10.1016/j.revmed.2016.02.004