Registry of Older Patients With Cancer

OBJECTIVES:

Primary

- To create a registry (to be called "Carolina Senior") of older patients with an
appointment at North Carolina Cancer Hospital.

- To have these patients complete a Geriatric Assessment (GA).

Secondary

- To measure the response rates of GAs of Carolina Senior patients and their satisfaction
with a GA by measuring the percentage of patients contacted who consent to complete the
GA; the percentage of patients able to complete the self-administered portion of the GA
without assistance; the length of time necessary to complete the GA; the variance and
number of missing items; the percentage of GAs that contain all 3 of the following
items: Timed Up and Go Assessment, Blessed Orientation-Memory-Concentration Test, and
healthcare professional-rated Karnofsky performance status; and patient satisfaction
with the questionnaire by identifying items that are distressing or too difficult to
comprehend.

- To gather information, including patterns of patient care, that would lend support for
future research in the 'Carolina Senior' population who receive a confirmed diagnosis of
cancer (except for nonmelanoma skin cancer, cervical carcinoma in situ without evidence
of disease, or prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia without evidence of prostate cancer).

OUTLINE: Patients complete a geriatric assessment, a multi-dimensional inter-disciplinary
patient evaluation that includes an evaluation of a patient's functional status (ability to
live independently at home and in the community), co-morbid medical conditions, cognition,
psychological status, social functioning and support, medication review, and nutritional
status. Patients' medical records are also reviewed. Patients' health status at 1 year is
incorporated into the registry.

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

- Patients must have an appointment at the North Carolina Cancer Hospital and agree to
complete the Geriatric Assessment NOTE: Not all patients included in the registry will
ultimately be diagnosed with cancer. Patients who complete a GA and are not diagnosed
with cancer will remain in the database, but will be categorized into a separate group
and will not have their medical records accessed.

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

- Able to read and speak English

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

- Not specified