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Annals of Oncology Advance Access originally published online on October 6, 2006
Annals of Oncology 2007 18(4):633-638; doi:10.1093/annonc/mdl178
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© 2006 European Society for Medical Oncology

reviews

The illness trajectory of elderly cancer patients across cultures: SIOG position paper

A Surbone1,*, M Kagawa-Singer2, C Terret3, L Baider4 On behalf of the SIOG Task Force on Cultural Competence in the Elderly{dagger}

1 European School of Oncology, Milan, Italy and New York University, New York, USA
2 UCLA School of Public Health and Asian American Studies Department, Los Angeles, USA
3 Centre Léon Bérard, Lyon, France
4 Hadassah University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel

* Correspondence to: Dr A. Surbone, European School of Oncology, Via del Bollo 4, 20123 Milano, Italy. Tel: +39-02-8546451; Fax: +39-02-85464545; E-mail: surbone{at}esoncology.org

Background: Due to the aging of the population, cancer has become a health priority worldwide. While the number of elderly cancer patients is rapidly increasing, many barriers still exist to their effective management. Compared with their younger counterparts, the elderly are less likely to receive optimal medical, psychological and spiritual treatment provided in a culturally competent manner.

Design: The scanty literature on cultural competence in elderly cancer patients has been reviewed. Additional material has been selected based on the authors' clinical research in medical oncology and psycho-oncology, and on their scholarly work in anthropology and bioethics.

Results: The aging process is a synergistic product of biological, behavioral and social issues within a cultural context. Knowledge about how older people understand, perceive and experience their illness trajectory and make choices is essential to the planning and delivering of effective cancer care.

Conclusion: This position paper of the SIOG Task Force on Cultural Competence in the Elderly creates awareness of the influence of culture in geriatric oncology. Negotiating cross-cultural issues in geriatric oncology helps managing possible conflicts between patients, families and physicians over differing health care values, beliefs, or practices. Possible areas of future scholarly investigation and clinical research are identified.

Key words: cultural competence, geriatric oncology, psycho-oncology

Received for publication May 12, 2006. Accepted for publication June 26, 2006.


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