Quality of life in elderly cancer patients: A hospital based study

Background - There are over 200 different known cancers that afflict humans. Increasing age is a major risk factor for developing cancer. India is witnessing a demographic transformation from a younger society to a mature one. There has been a growing call to understand the medical and psychological challenges that elderly patients confront. Moreover when these elderly people, already an under privileged class, suffer from a devastating illness like cancer, puts a lot of psychological and financial stress on the patient and the caregiver, thus affecting their quality of life.Aims – The present study was undertaken to assess the quality of life in this socially and economically under privileged class of population suffering from malignancies. The study also aimed at finding the pattern of malignancies in this group of population and factors affecting the Quality of Life (QoL) in them.Methods - Subjects were recruited from patients above 60 years of age presenting in medicine or oncology OPD and / or IPD, of Himalayan Institute of Medical Sciences, Doiwala, Dehradun with a primary diagnosis of cancer. SF -36 questionnaire was used to generate data.Statistical analysis - Data was analyzed by descriptive statistics.Results–Gastrointestinal malignancies were the most common malignancies in the elderly population, to be followed by lung and head and neck malignancies. Most of them present in advanced stages of disease. The Quality of Life (QoL) of these patients was negatively affected by the type of malignancy and its staging. Socio-demographic patterns like age, sex, education, financial status and life style also play a key role in QoL.Conclusion- The incidence of cancer is increasing in elderly and it has a negative impact on the QoL in this under privileged class of population. Therefore, it is important to identify the various malignancies at an early stage and other factors predicting quality of life in this age group so as to build up a comprehensive and multidimensional approach in their treatment