What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to identify patient characteristics and aspects of the geriatric assessment linked to chemotherapy decisions in older women with breast cancer.

February 22, 2026

Abstract PS1-02-21: Personalizing breast cancer treatment for older adults: use of the geriatric assessment in chemotherapy decision making

Key Points

This research aims to identify patient characteristics and aspects of the geriatric assessment linked to chemotherapy decisions in older women with breast cancer.
Conducted a cohort analysis of 50 women aged 65 and older with breast cancer.
Evaluated differences in geriatric assessment domains between those who proceeded to chemotherapy and those who did not.
Analyzed potential associations with not undergoing chemotherapy.
Older age, non-triple negative disease, and higher frailty levels were significantly linked to not proceeding with chemotherapy.
Functional performance and dependency on instrumental activities of daily living (iADL) played crucial roles in treatment decisions.
42% of women who underwent chemotherapy received modifications to their treatment regimen.

Abstract

Abstract Purpose: To assess which patient characteristics and elements of the GeriatricAssessment (GA) are associated with not proceeding to chemotherapy in older womenwith breast cancer. Methods: Between April 2022 and February 2024, 50 women aged 65 and older with breastcancer were seen in the Cancer and Aging Interdisciplinary Team clinic at our institution forGA prior to initiating systemic treatment. We present characteristics among our cohort andevaluate differences in GA domains between patients who proceeded to chemotherapyand those who did not. Results: When comparing the cohort of patients who did not undergo chemotherapy vsthose who did, factors that were significantly associated with the decision to omitchemotherapy included older age (median 84 vs 75 years old, p0.001), non-triple negativedisease (75% vs 42%, p=0.035), frailty (94% vs 55%, p=0.007), abnormal functionalperformance test (75% vs 19%, p0.001), high risk CARG-TT score (50% vs 13%, p=0.007),chemotherapy not recommended by geriatrician (69% vs 0%, p0.001), iADL dependency(88% vs 44%, p=0.047), KPS80 (75% vs 19%, p=0.003), and limited social activity (100% vs52%, p=0.015). Of the women who proceeded to chemotherapy, 42% underwent upfrontchemotherapy modifications. Conclusion: Our study identified components of the GA associated with chemotherapydecisions and modifications in older women with breast cancer. Further research isneeded to determine the causal relationships between GA components and decision-making and evaluate how such decision-making could be improved. Citation Format: S. A. Roberts, A. L. Tin, J. Singh, D. Lake, E. Meditz, A. Kulkarni, M. Boparai, B. Korc-Grodzicki, A. Shahrokni, K. Alexander. Personalizing breast cancer treatment for older adults: use of the geriatric assessment in chemotherapy decision making abstract. In: Proceedings of the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium 2025; 2025 Dec 9-12; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Clin Cancer Res 2026;32(4 Suppl):Abstract nr PS1-02-21.

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Cite This Study

Roberts et al. (Tue,) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/699a9ded482488d673cd4365 https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1158/1557-3265.sabcs25-ps1-02-21

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