Morris Lucinda, Turner Sandra, Thiruthaneeswaran Niluja, Agar Meera
University of Technology, St George Cancer Care Center, St George Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Radiation Oncology Department, Westmead Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
Semin Radiat Oncol. 2022 Apr;32(2):109-114. doi: 10.1016/j.semradonc.2021.11.008.
As the global population ages, the care of older adults with cancer is increasingly recognised as a growing challenge in oncology practice worldwide. At present, outcomes for older adults with cancer are worse than younger counterparts. The need for improved clinician education around geriatric oncology is internationally recognised as being fundamental to addressing this problem. Radiation therapy represents an excellent localised treatment modality for older adults due to its limited systemic toxicity, especially in circumstances in which surgery and chemotherapy are deemed inappropriate. Thus, the education of future radiation oncologists and other radiation oncology professionals (including radiation therapists, nurses, and physicists) in geriatric oncology is crucial to ensuring the complex needs of this patient population are met. However, evidence shows that within the specialty of radiation oncology, knowledge levels around key concepts in geriatric oncology are low and there is limited educational focus on the specific issues important for the care of older adults. An evidence-based, global approach to improving radiation oncology professionals' knowledge and clinical practice in geriatric oncology is needed to provide optimal care for older adults undergoing radiation therapy. This article provides an overview of the current status of geriatric oncology training and education in the specialty of radiation oncology and future directions to improve the knowledge and skills of radiation oncology professionals in caring for older adults.
随着全球人口老龄化，癌症老年患者的护理日益被视为全球肿瘤学实践中一项日益严峻的挑战。目前，癌症老年患者的治疗结果比年轻患者更差。国际上公认，改善临床医生在老年肿瘤学方面的教育是解决这一问题的根本。放射治疗因其有限的全身毒性，对老年患者而言是一种出色的局部治疗方式，尤其是在手术和化疗被认为不适用的情况下。因此，对未来的放射肿瘤学家和其他放射肿瘤学专业人员（包括放射治疗师、护士和物理学家）进行老年肿瘤学教育，对于确保满足这一患者群体的复杂需求至关重要。然而，有证据表明，在放射肿瘤学专业领域内，老年肿瘤学关键概念的知识水平较低，且针对老年患者护理重要的具体问题的教育重点有限。需要一种基于证据的全球方法来提高放射肿瘤学专业人员在老年肿瘤学方面的知识和临床实践能力，以便为接受放射治疗的老年患者提供最佳护理。本文概述了放射肿瘤学专业中老年肿瘤学培训与教育现状以及提高放射肿瘤学专业人员护理老年患者知识和技能的未来方向。
