Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes of Gastric Cancer Patients Aged over 80 Years: A Retrospective Case-Control Study

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The average human life expectancy is increasing worldwide, thus the proportion of elderly gastric cancer patients is also increasing. In this case-control study, we investigated the clinical and oncologic outcomes of gastric cancer in patients over 80 years old. METHODS: From January 2004 to December 2010, 291 patients aged over 80 years old (case group) were diagnosed and treated with gastric cancer at Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Korea. From the same period, 291 patients aged 18 to 80 years old were selected as the control group. The clinical findings and clinical outcomes of gastric cancer were retrospectively reviewed and compared between the two groups. RESULTS: There were significant differences in the overall 5-year survival rate between the case and control groups (30.9% vs. 73.8%, respectively; P<0.001). In patients who received the curative treatment, overall 3- and 5-year survival rates showed 74.3% and 57.9% in case group and 91.6% and 86.5% in the control group. When analysis was confined to resectable elderly patients with a favorable performance, the curative resection group showed significantly better overall 3- and 5-year survival rates than the conservative treatment group (73.7% and 58.8% vs. 29.8% and 0%, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Although elderly gastric cancer patients show an advanced stage at diagnosis and poor prognosis compared with non-elderly patients, elderly patients with good performance could benefit from curative resection. Thus, the clinical decision whether to undergo curative resection or conservative management should be made on an individualized basis.