Study Analyzes Cervical Cancer Treatment

When it comes to treatment for cervical cancer, researchersfound that elderly women are less likely to receive aggressivetreatment, compared with their younger counterparts. The study,reported in Cancer (January 1, 2005), examined medicalrecords of >1500 patients treated for invasive cervical cancerover 17 years (1986-2003). The records were divided into 2 categories:women younger than 70 and women 70 or older.

The results of the study indicated that, regardless of the stageof tumor development, surgery was performed to treat 16% ofthe elderly group, compared with 54% of the younger group.The remaining patients were treated with radiation without surgery.The women treated with radiation therapy alone were 5times less likely to survive, compared with women treated surgically.Elderly women treated with radiation were given lowerdoses on average, and they were 9 times more apt to forgotreatment altogether.