Characteristics of pancreatic carcinoma in the elderly.

Conclusion: Lymphogenous as well as hematogenous metastases were significantly less frequent in the elderly group of patients, although local invasion was comparable. Survival was comparable between both groups although palliative therapy alone was significantly more frequent in the elderly.

Background: The relative and absolute numbers of elderly patients continue to increase, as does the incidence of pancreatic carcinoma. To determine the optimal therapy for elderly patients with pancreatic carcinoma, we examined their clinicopathological features.

Methods: The clinical and histopathological features of pancreatic carcinoma in patients 70 yr of age or older (n = 89) were compared with those in patients aged 69 yr or less (n = 184).

Results: A total of 273 patients showed histologically tubular adenocarcinomas and their major variants. The male:female ratio peaked at 1:0.3 in patients under 49 yr old but gradually decreased to 1:1.2 in those aged over 80 yr. There were no significant differences between the two groups in the resectability, prognosis, location, or histology of the tumor. Hematogenous and lymphogenous metastases were detected at autopsy in 68 and 61% of patients old than 70, and in 82 and 80% of the younger group.