Compliance and associated factors of postoperative chemotherapy for elderly patients with colorectal cancer

Abstract

To investigate the compliance and associated factors of postoperative chemotherapy for elderly patients with colorectal cancer. A total of 386 elderly patients (>70 years old) with stage II(-IIII( colorectal cancer underwent surgery between January 2000 and January 2010. The clinicopathological data were retrospectively reviewed. There were 226 patients received postoperative chemotherapy and 160(41.4%) refused. Logistic regression model was used to analyze factors associated with patients compliance to chemotherapy. Patients were followed up by phone call regarding the reason for refusal. Multivariate analysis showed that gender, body mass index (BMI), body surface area (BSA), age, and complication were independent risk factors associated with chemotherapy compliance(All P<0.05). Follow-up phone questionnaire showed that 63.8%(51/80) of patients with stage II( cancer did not received chemotherapy because of the doctor's uncertainty of chemotherapy benefit. For stage III( patients, fear of chemotherapy (31.2%, 15/48), feeling uncomfortable (18.8%, 9/48), and financial issues(18.8%, 9/48) were the main factors. The desperate feeling was the predominant reason for stage IIII( patients(56.2%, 18/32). Gender, BSA, age, and postoperative complication are the main factors associated with compliance to postoperative chemotherapy. Doctors' recommendation should be emphasized for stage II( patients. For stage III( patients, treatment recommendation should be enthusiastic.