Cirugía Oncológica en pacientes ancianos, revisión de la literatura

The aging population in developing countries presents significant challenges for oncological centers, particularly in terms of the increased incidence of cancer and the need for comprehensive assessment of elderly patients, defined as those over 60 years of age. A literature search was conducted using two bibliographic databases: PUBMED/MEDLINE and EMBASE, to identify available studies up to January 2025 in Spanish and English. The search yielded 179 articles, and after excluding duplicates, 384 clinical trials, 34 systematic reviews, 41 descriptive studies, 176 review articles, and 6 clinical practice guidelines were identified. The studies were independently assessed by the researchers to extract relevant information for this review. It is estimated that the growing population of individuals over 60 years of age, along with the correlation between the increase in solid tumor incidence and age, will result in a higher number of elderly patients undergoing surgery. There has been an increase in the number of reports on postoperative outcomes after oncological surgery, as well as tools that allow for preoperative estimation of frailty. However, these methods have not been validated in cancer patients in Latin America.