Clinicopathological characteristics and long-term outcomes of colorectal cancer in elderly Chinese patients undergoing potentially curative surgery

The aim of this study was to determine the clinicopathological characteristics and outcomes of Chinese colorectal cancer (CRC) patients aged 75 years and older undergoing potentially curative surgery.

A total of 2,482 CRC patients at TNM stage I–III undergoing surgical treatment between 1995 and 2005 were evaluated, and patients were divided into a younger (<75 years old) and an elderly (≥75 years) group.

There were 2,482 CRC patients in this study, of which 2,194 (88.4 %) patients were in the younger group (mean age 57 years) and 288 (11.6 %) were in the elderly group (mean age 79 years). Significant differences were observed between the two groups with regard to the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ score, tumor location, co-morbidities, emergency procedures, use of chemotherapy, proportion admitted to the ICU, length of ICU stay, causes of death, T/N stage and postoperative recurrence. The postoperative mortality increased from 4.8 % in the younger group to 8.3 % in the older group (p = 0.011). Although significant differences were found in the overall 5-year survival (73 vs. 56 %, p < 0.0001) and disease-free 5-year survival (68 vs. 54 %, p < 0.0001) between the two groups, the cancer-specific 5-year survival was similar (88 vs. 85 %, p = 0.089) in both groups.

Although elderly CRC patients have unique clinicopathological features, a higher postoperative mortality and a worse overall and disease-free survival compared with younger patients, the cancer-specific survival at five years is similar between elderly and younger patients. Elderly patients benefit from radical surgery and have a good postoperative oncological outcome, irrespective of their age.