Functional disability and presence of frailty markers in older cancer patients referred to a geriatric oncology clinic

Abstract

involved in functional independence, and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living, that involve a more complex interactionsbetween and the environment. Objectives: To estimate the prevalence of dependence in ADL and IADL in older patients with prostate cancer in Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study analysing preliminary data with prostate cancer patients, 60 years and over, who are participants in a cohort study being conducted in Campo Grande and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Individuals are recruited before starting treatment and followed upwith interviews at 6, 12 and 24 months after recruitment. Katz’s scale was used to evaluate dependency on Basic Activities of Daily Life and Lawton’s Scale was used for assessment of dependency onInstrumental Activities of Daily Living. A descriptive analysis of the characteristics of the study population was performed through frequency distributions. Results: This study includes the first 100 participants recruited in Campo Grande. Thesample had a predominance of with 60 to 79 years while those aged 80 and over corresponded only to 14% of them. More than half (54%) of the subjects were married and had low educational level (35% were illiterate and 50% had 1 to 8 years of schooling). In regard to the activities of daily living evaluated by ADL, most individuals (ranging between 97 and 99%)reported performing them without help”. The exception was the question about sphincter control, in which only 85% claimed to have full control. Eighty-three percent of the patients were classified as independent on ADL. At the ages 60 to 69 years, this percentage corresponded to 91% of the patients andin the age groups 70-79 years and 80 years and over, this percentage was 81 and 84%, respectively. Regarding the IADL, the percentage of completion of activities unaided ranged between 60 and 86%. The prevalence of IADL dependency was 53%. In the age group 60-69 years, 67% of the patients were classified as independent in IADL, while in the age group 70-79 years only 42%were independent. At 80 years and over, all were dependent on IADL. When ADL and IADL were considered together, the dependency reached 14% of the sample. Conclusion: The study showed s a predominance of under 80 years of age, which were still living with their partners and had low educational level. In relation to functionality, the analysis revealed relatively healthy prostate cancer patients, with certain dependency only in a few of the more complex activities that require interaction with the environment and society in general. Dependency on both, ADL and IADL, increased with age, as expected.