Elderly patients with breast cancer get widely varying levels of treatment across Europe, according to a new study.
Researchers said the variations reflect the lack of evidence about what is most effective for patients of this age group.
The findings come from an analysis of the care of more than 119,000 patients over the age of 70 in the UK, Belgium, Ireland, the Netherlands, Portugal and Poland.
They were reported to the European Cancer Congress in Vienna, Austria, yesterday.
Researcher Dr Marloes Derks said 37% of patients in Ireland did not get surgery compared with 28% in the Netherlands and 15% in Belgium.
But initial analysis of survival rates found the worst survival rates in the Netherlands compared with Belgium and Ireland, Dr Derks said.
Dr Derks, from the Leiden University Medical Centre, the Netherlands, said: “Our initial results show that there are large treatment differences among different European countries due to a lack of evidence for the treatment of older patients with breast cancer.
"With this study we hope to be able to raise awareness about this specific group of patients and we also hope that it will lead to more research in order to develop evidence-based treatment guidelines for older patients with breast cancer.”
Dr Derks explained: "The use of adjuvant hormone therapy in older patients with stage I disease was the lowest in The Netherlands at 21%, while in Ireland, Belgium, Portugal and Poland the use of adjuvant hormonal therapy varied between 82 to 88%.
"Chemotherapy use was the lowest in The Netherlands for all stages of breast cancer in elderly patients.
"For example, in elderly patients with stage III disease, the use of chemotherapy was the lowest in The Netherlands at nine percent, followed by Ireland (26%), Belgium (30%), Portugal (58%) and the highest in Poland at 78%."
She added: “In order to improve treatment approaches and outcomes in elderly patients with breast cancer, more observational studies based on data from large national population registries of older patients are needed. The quality of these national registries should be improved and a European collaboration to share this data should be encouraged.
"Furthermore, with regard to the increasing number of older patients with breast cancer, there is an urgent need to conduct age-specific clinical trials.”
Abstract no: 1808. Treatment patterns for older patients with non-metastatic breast cancer in four European countries – preliminary data from a EURECCA international comparison
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