Beyond the black box of geriatric assessment: Understanding enhancements to care by the geriatric oncology clinic.

OBJECTIVE

Comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA) of older adults with cancer aids treatment decision-making and prognostication. Much less is known about the supportive care elements or enhancements to care afforded by the CGA. We characterized the enhancements to care provided by a geriatric oncology clinic and determined how these vary by indication for referral.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

All patients age 65 or older referred to a single academic geriatric oncology clinic between July 2015 (clinic opening) and June 2017 were included. Treatment enhancements were prospectively recorded in 5 categories: educational support, comorbidity management, symptom management, oncologic treatment delivery, and peri-operative management recommendations. Indications for referral were categorized into 3 groups: pre-treatment (n = 97, 44%), on active treatment (n = 89, 41%), and survivorship phase (n = 33, 15%). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and multivariable logistic regression.

RESULTS

219 patients were seen during the study period (mean age 79.7 years, 69% male). Overall, educational support (96%) and comorbidity management (95%) were the most common enhancements, whereas peri-operative management (10%) was the least common and provided only to pre-treatment patients. Enhancements to cancer treatment delivery were offered more often to patients pre-treatment than on active treatment (61% versus 41%, p < 0.001). Other enhancements to care did not vary by indication for referral.

CONCLUSION

Educational support and comorbidity management are nearly universally offered. Most enhancements to care do not vary by indication for referral. Understanding the enhancements to care provided by geriatric oncology clinics can help with resource planning and program design.