With the aging population, older adults constitute a growing proportion of the new cancer cases. Given the heterogeneous health status among older adults and their susceptibility to aging-related vulnerabilities, understanding their diversity and its implications becomes increasingly crucial for prognostication and guiding diagnostics, treatment decisions, and follow-up, as well as informing supportive care interventions. Geriatric assessment and management (GAM) refers to the comprehensive evaluation of an older individual's health status with subsequent management plans focusing on both oncologic and non-oncologic interventions. In 2019, the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) and the International Society of Geriatric Oncology (SIOG) established the ESMO/SIOG Cancer in the Elderly Working Group. This position paper reflects the recommendations of the working group. Our paper summarizes the existing evidence with a focus on recent key trials and based on this, we propose several recommendations and future directions.

Evaluating population‐based data of hematologic malignancies (HMs) in older adults provides prognostic information for this growing demographic. Incidence rates and one‐ and five‐year relative survival rates were examined for specific HMs among adults ages ≥75 years using data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) Program. Hematologic malignancy cases (Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), non‐Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), multiple myeloma (MM), acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and chronic myeloid leukemia (CML)) were reported to one of 18 SEER registries. Recent average annual (2010–2014) incidence rates and incidence trends from 1973 to 2014 were examined for cases ages ≥75 years. One‐ and five‐year relative cancer survival rates were examined for adults ages ≥75 years diagnosed 2007–2013, with follow‐up into 2014. From 1973 to 2014, incidence rates increased for NHL, MM, and AML, decreased for HL, and remained relatively stable for ALL, CLL, and CML among adults ages ≥75 years. The highest one‐ and five‐year relative survival rates were observed among adults with CLL ages 75–84 years (1 year: 91.8% (95% CI = 91.8–90.8)) and 5 years: 76.5% (95% CI = 74.2–78.6)). The lowest one‐ and five‐year survival rates were observed among adults with AML ages 75–84 (1 year: 18.2% (95% CI = 74.2–78.6) and 5 years: 2.7% (95% CI = 2.0–3.6)). Survival for older adults ages ≥75 years with HMs is poor, particularly for acute leukemia. Understanding the heterogeneity in HM outcomes among older patients may help clinicians better address the hematological cancer burden and mortality in the aging population.

Background: Patient navigation (PN) is a patient-centered health care service delivery model that assists individuals, particularly the medically underserved, in overcoming barriers (e.g., personal, logistical, system) to care across the cancer care continuum. In 2012, the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer (CoC) announced that healthcare facilities seeking CoC-accreditation must have PN processes in place starting January 1, 2015. The CoC mandate, in light of the recent findings from centers within the Patient Navigation Research Program, and the influx of PN interventions, warrants the present literature review. Methods: PubMed and Medline were searched for studies published from January 2010 to October 2015, particularly those recent articles within the past 2 years, addressing PN for breast and gynecological cancers, and written in English. Search terms included patient navigation, navigation, navigator, cancer screening, clinical trials, cancer patient, cancer survivor, breast cancer, gynecological cancer, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer, vaginal cancer, and vulvar cancer. Results: Consistent with prior reviews, PN was shown to be effective in helping women receive cancer screenings, receive more timely diagnostic resolution after a breast and cervical cancer screening abnormality, initiate treatment sooner, receive proper treatment, and improve quality of life after cancer diagnosis. However, several limitations were observed. The majority of PN interventions focused on cancer screening and diagnostic resolution for breast cancer. As observed in prior reviews, methodological rigor (e.g., randomized controlled trial design) was lacking. Conclusion: Future research opportunities include testing PN interventions in the post-treatment settings and among gynecological cancer patient populations, age-related barriers to effective PN, and collaborative efforts between community health workers and patient navigators as care goes across segments of the cancer control continuum. As PN programs continue to develop and become a standard of care, further research will be required to determine the effectiveness of cancer PN across the cancer care continuum, and in different patient populations.

Background: Obesity and chronic disease risk are significantly related to healthy lifestyle behavior, including dietary intakes. Further, the interrelated etiology of many chronic conditions supports the comorbidity in US adults to manage multiple diagnoses. The purpose of this study was to assess diet quality across varying numbers of existing conditions, including obesity, hypercholesterolemia, hyperglycemia, and hypertension. Methods: Cross-sectional analysis of data from 17 356 adults aged 45 years and older from the 2005-2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were assessed for the presence of overweight or obesity (body mass index >25 kg/m²), hyperglycemia (glycated hemoglobin >5.7%), hypercholesterolemia (>200 mg/dL), and high blood pressure (>120/80 mm Hg). Overall diet quality was assessed using Healthy Eating Index 2015 scores computed from the intakes reported during the 24-hour dietary recall collected in the mobile examination center. The total score (range 0-100) is based on the sum of 13 subscales that represent concordance with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Results: Few adults presented with no markers of chronic disease (n = 407), with other presenting 1 indicator (n = 1978), 2 indicators (n = 4614), 3 indicators (n = 6319), and all 4 indicators (4038). While there was no significant difference in mean energy intakes on the day of intake, those with all 4 markers of chronic disease had a significantly poorer diet quality ( P < .001) and consumed significantly more saturated fat ( P = .026), but significantly less total carbohydrates, dietary fiber, and added sugars ( P < .005). While mean consumption of protein was lowest in those with more chronic conditions, the differences were not significant. Conclusion: Overall dietary intakes from the day of intake indicated that those with a greater number of chronic conditions presented with poorer overall dietary intakes. The foundational intervention strategy across all evidence-based treatment strategies is the promotion of healthy lifestyle behaviors.

Objective: To examine the prevalence of and factors associated with fear of recurrence (FCR) following treatment for breast, ovarian, endometrial, and colorectal cancer among older women.Methods: Participants were enrolled in the Women's Health Initiative Life and Longevity After Cancer study. Descriptive statistics and multivariate logistic regression models were used to assess the association of demographic, clinical, and quality of life variables with survivors' FCR, dichotomized as <14 (low) or ≥14 (high) using the Cancer Worry Scale.Results: Out of the 4259 participants, 3124 (73.3%) were diagnosed with breast cancer, 559 (13.1%) with colorectal cancer, 493 (11.6%) with endometrial cancer, and 83 (2%) with ovarian cancer. There were no significant differences in FCR by cancer type (P = .75), with a mean scale score of 10.8 ± 2.87 for all participants combined. Approximately 16% (n = 679) were in the high FCR group. Multivariable analyses indicated that being younger at diagnosis, reporting a symptom score of ≥8, receipt of chemotherapy, and lower self‐rated health were significantly associated with high FCR. Women who were widowed or never married were less likely to report high FCR.Conclusions: Fear of recurrence was experienced by a small but important proportion of older, long‐term cancer survivors and is associated with multiple demographic and clinical variables. These results will better inform researchers and clinicians regarding the individuals who are at risk of FCR.

When patients are diagnosed with cancer, they begin to negotiate their illness identity in relation to their past and future selves, their relationships, and their group memberships. Thus, how patients view their cancer in relation to their other identities may affect how and why they make particular decisions about treatment options. Using the Communication Theory of Identity (CTI), the current study explores: (1) how and why illness identity is framed across identity layers in relation to one particular cancer treatment: participation in a cancer clinical trial (CT); and (2) how and why patients experience identity conflicts while making their treatment decisions. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were analyzed for 46 cancer patients who were offered a CT. Results of a grounded theory analysis indicated that patients expressed separate identity frames (e.g., personal, relational, and communal), aligned identity frames (e.g., personal and communal), and identity conflicts (e.g., personal-personal). This study theoretically shows how and why patient illness identity relates to cancer treatment decision-making as well as how and why patients relate (and conflict) with the cancer communal identity frame. Practical implications include how healthcare providers and family members can support patient decision-making through awareness of and accommodating to identity shifts.