Amsalu, E.; Zhang, Y.; Harrison, C.; Nguyen, T.V.; Nguyen, T.N. Exploring Frailty in the Intersection of Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer in Older People. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health2023, 20, 7105.
Amsalu, E.; Zhang, Y.; Harrison, C.; Nguyen, T.V.; Nguyen, T.N. Exploring Frailty in the Intersection of Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer in Older People. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20, 7105.
Amsalu, E.; Zhang, Y.; Harrison, C.; Nguyen, T.V.; Nguyen, T.N. Exploring Frailty in the Intersection of Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer in Older People. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health2023, 20, 7105.
Amsalu, E.; Zhang, Y.; Harrison, C.; Nguyen, T.V.; Nguyen, T.N. Exploring Frailty in the Intersection of Cardiovascular Disease and Cancer in Older People. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20, 7105.
Abstract
Advances in cardiovascular therapies and cancer treatments result in longer patient survival. The coexistence of cancer and cardiovascular disease has been recognized as a complex clinical scenario. Beside cardiovascular disease, older people with cancer are at greater risk of experiencing multimorbidity and the geriatric syndromes such as frailty. In older people, the concurrent presence of cancer and cardiovascular disease increased the risk of mortality, and the presence of frailty can exacerbate their conditions and hinder the treatment effectiveness. Given the significant intersection among frailty, cardiovascular disease and cancer in older people, this paper aims to provide an overview of the current research in this field and identifies gaps in research to understand the burden and impact of frailty in these populations. While many studies have examined the prevalence and impact of frailty on adverse outcomes in patients with cancer or with cardiovascular disease, evidence of frailty in individuals with both conditions is lacking. There is no universally accepted definition of frailty, which leads to inconsistencies in identifying and measuring frailty in older adults with cardiovascular disease and cancer. The frailty index seems to be a preferred frailty definition in studies in patients with cancer, while the frailty phenotype seems to be more commonly used in cardiovascular research. However, differences in how the frailty index was categorised and in how patients were classified as ‘frail’ depending on the cut points may have negative effect on understanding the impact of frailty in the studied populations. This makes it challenging to compare findings across different studies and limits our understanding of the prevalence and impact of frailty in these populations. Addressing these research gaps will contribute to our understanding of the burden of frailty in older people with cardiovascular disease and cancer, and improved clinical care protocols in this vulnerable population.
Medicine and Pharmacology, Cardiac and Cardiovascular Systems
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