Developing a clinical and biological measures of aging core: Cancer and Aging Research Group infrastructure

Abstract

The relevance and impact of human subject research on clinical practice depends on whether the study population reflects the age distribution and health characteristic profiles of the general population. Older adults with a cancer are disproportionately underrepresented in clinical trials and fewer data are available to assess the risks and benefits of cancer treatments, particularly adverse effects on functional outcomes and quality of life [ [1] Naylor M.D. Cohen H.J. Hurria A. Improving the quality of cancer care in an aging population. JAMA. 2013; 310: 1795-1796 Crossref PubMed Scopus (92) Google Scholar ]. Furthermore, there is a lack of understanding of how the underlying biologic processes of aging affect tolerance of cancer treatment and survival outcomes. In 2010, the Cancer and Aging Research Group (CARG) outlined the following gaps in generating high quality research in older adults with cancer: 1) clinical measures most relevant to older adults are rarely incorporated into oncology clinical trials; 2) biological and physiological markers of aging are inconsistently included in oncology research; 3) a need for more studies of vulnerable older adults and/or those aged 75 years or older; and 4) limited research infrastructure to support collaborations between geriatrics and oncology [ [2] Dale W. Mohile S.G. Eldadah B.A. et al. Biological, clinical, and psychosocial correlates at the interface of cancer and aging research. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2012; 104: 581-589 Crossref PubMed Scopus (81) Google Scholar ]. Almost a decade later, CARG has been awarded a five-year grant to develop a sustainable national research infrastructure to create and support significant and innovative projects at the interface of cancer and aging that address the four gaps that were initially identified. As a component of this infrastructure award, interactive Cores were developed to facilitate and support aging-related research in oncology. The purpose of this perspective is to summarize the mission and proposed function, process and procedures for Core 1: Clinical and Biological Measures of Aging; and to provide examples of how the Core will facilitate research in geriatric oncology.