In a tertiary care setting, older adults do not differ from their younger counterparts in terms of acceptance of chemotherapy. However, when treatment is presumed, they differ in terms of willingness to trade survival for current quality of life. Generalization of findings is limited by the relatively small sample of older adults (n = 43) and the referral population from which the sample was drawn. Replication with a larger older adult sample in a community setting is needed.

Purpose Local failure in unresectable pancreatic cancer may contribute to death. We hypothesized that intensification of local therapy would improve local control and survival. The objectives were to determine the maximum tolerated radiation dose delivered by IMRT with FDR-G, freedom from local progression (FFLP) and overall survival (OS). Methods and Materials Eligibility included pathologic confirmation of adenocarcinoma, radiographically unresectable, performance status (PS) of 0–2, ANC of ≥1500/mm3, platelets ≥100,000/mm3, creatinine <2 mg/dl, bilirubin <3 mg/dl and ALT/AST ≤2.5 x ULN. FDR-G (1000 mg/m2/100-minutes I.V.) was given on days −22 and −15, 1, 8, 22, and 29. IMRT started day 1. Dose levels were escalated from 50 to 60 Gy in 25 fractions. DLT was defined as gastrointestinal toxicity ≥Grade (G)3, neutropenic fever, or deterioration in PS to ≥3 between day 1 and 126. Dose level was assigned using TITE-CRM with the target DLT rate set to 0.25. Results Fifty patients were accrued. DLTs were observed in 11 patients: G3/4 anorexia, nausea, vomiting, and/or dehydration (7); duodenal bleed (3); duodenal perforation (1). The recommended dose is 55Gy, producing a probability of DLT of 0.24. The 2-year FFLP is 59% (95% CI: 32–79). Median and 2-year overall survival are 14.8 months (95% CI: 12.6–22.2) and 30% (95% CI 17–45). Twelve patients underwent resection (10 R0, 2 R1) and survived a median of 32 months. Conclusions High dose radiotherapy with concurrent FDR-G can be delivered safely. The encouraging efficacy data suggest that outcome may be improved in unresectable patients through intensification of local therapy.

Elimination of six items from the anorexia/cachexia subscale of the FAACT was accomplished without loss of internal consistency or sensitivity to change in performance status. The A/CS-12 subscale provides unique, important information not captured by a generic chronic illness questionnaire.