Geriatric Oncology Service, NHO Kyushu Cancer Center, Fukuoka, Japan.
Division of Medical Oncology, NHO Kyushu Cancer Center, Fukuoka, Japan.
Jpn J Clin Oncol. 2019 Dec 27;49(12):1114-1119. doi: 10.1093/jjco/hyz123.
The aim of this survey was to describe how geriatric oncology is integrated in undergraduate teaching and graduate training as well as in daily clinical oncology practice in Japan.
All schools of medicine in Japan are allied with graduate schools of medicine. We conducted a survey of all Japanese medical and graduate schools (n = 81), and designated cancer hospitals (n = 437) from July 2018 to August 2018. The survey of the schools asked about existence of geriatrics division and geriatric oncology service and if an education curriculum in geriatrics and geriatric oncology was used. The survey of designated cancer hospitals requested general hospital information and the current practice patterns of general geriatric and cancer patients.
Forty-eight medical schools (59%) participated in this survey, and teaching in geriatrics and geriatric oncology was implemented in 23 schools and 1 school, respectively. Forty-two graduate schools of medicine (52%) responded; five had an education curriculum in geriatrics, but none provided geriatric oncology training. Among 151 participating hospitals (35%), 5 had a geriatrics division and 20 hospitals employed geriatricians. There was no geriatric oncology service or geriatric oncology specialists in any of the 151 hospitals. Seventy percent of the hospitals reported performing a geriatric assessment for at least some older adults with cancer.
This survey provides information on the current state of Japanese education and clinical practice in geriatric oncology. In Japan, a nation with among the largest population of older citizens in the world, education and training greatly need to be promoted to disseminate a core set of geriatrics knowledge and skills to students, trainees and healthcare professionals.
本调查旨在描述日本在本科教学、研究生培训以及日常临床肿瘤学实践中如何融入老年肿瘤学。
日本所有的医学院都与医学院研究生院结盟。我们于 2018 年 7 月至 8 月期间对所有日本医学和研究生院（n=81）以及指定的癌症医院（n=437）进行了调查。对学校的调查询问了是否存在老年病学系和老年肿瘤学服务，以及是否使用老年医学和老年肿瘤学教育课程。对指定癌症医院的调查要求提供综合医院信息以及普通老年患者和癌症患者的当前实践模式。
48 所医学院（59%）参与了此次调查，其中 23 所学校教授老年医学和老年肿瘤学。42 所医学院研究生院（52%）做出回应；其中 5 所学校有老年医学教育课程，但没有提供老年肿瘤学培训。在 151 家参与医院（35%）中，有 5 家医院设有老年病科，20 家医院聘请老年病医生。在这 151 家医院中，没有一家提供老年肿瘤学服务或老年肿瘤学专家。70%的医院报告称，他们至少对一些老年癌症患者进行了老年评估。
本调查提供了日本老年肿瘤学教育和临床实践的现状信息。在日本，作为世界上老年人口最多的国家之一，教育和培训急需推广，以便向学生、学员和医疗保健专业人员传播一套核心的老年医学知识和技能。
