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The Countermeasure for Aging Society in Japan
Annals of Oncology 25 (Supplement 5): v7, 2014 doi:10.1093/annonc/mdu400.4
AOJ
5
THE COUNTERMEASURE FOR AGING SOCIETY IN JAPAN
abstracts
Kazuhiko Nakagawa Department of Medical Oncology, Kinki University faculty of Medicine
Japan is the first country that reached the level of “super aging society”. There is no doubt that the elderly shows higher morbidity rate of disease. The increase of the number of elderly cancer patients is considered the most serious social issue for two reasons, 1)The morbidity of cancer is directly connected with cause of death, 2)Plenty of human and financial resources are required for cancer treatment and care. The issues of elderly cancer patients are deeply related with several social issues. What is the definition of "elderly cancer patient"? In Japan, most of the 70-year-olds are retired from their social activities, but many of them still have the strong will to contribute to the society. Of course, the caring for the primary organ dysfunction, the enrichment of mental health care and the enforcement of supporting system of surrounding people are essential, but how can we scrounge up the cost for these medical resources if costly molecular targeting drugs, which are to be developed in future, are administered to increasing elderly cancer patients? How can we maintain “public health insurance for the whole nation” that have been supporting the aging society in Japan. If we conclude it is necessary to differentiate cancer treatment strategy according to patients’ age, the question is “Is it really reasonable to determine the appropriateness of cancer treatment and differentiation of treatment strategy according to biological age alone?” I would like to examine and discuss the current situation and issues of medical administration based on the result of clinical trials targeting on the elderly patients.
Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/annonc/article-abstract/25/suppl_5/v7/2240129 by guest on 24 October 2019
ASIA & OCEANIA Joint Symposium ’KACO/CSCO/MOGA/SSO/JSMO’: ‘Comprehensive approaches for elderly cancer patients in an aging society from the perspectives in different countries’
© The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society for Medical Oncology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: [email protected].
AOJ
5
THE COUNTERMEASURE FOR AGING SOCIETY IN JAPAN
abstracts
Kazuhiko Nakagawa Department of Medical Oncology, Kinki University faculty of Medicine
Japan is the first country that reached the level of “super aging society”. There is no doubt that the elderly shows higher morbidity rate of disease. The increase of the number of elderly cancer patients is considered the most serious social issue for two reasons, 1)The morbidity of cancer is directly connected with cause of death, 2)Plenty of human and financial resources are required for cancer treatment and care. The issues of elderly cancer patients are deeply related with several social issues. What is the definition of "elderly cancer patient"? In Japan, most of the 70-year-olds are retired from their social activities, but many of them still have the strong will to contribute to the society. Of course, the caring for the primary organ dysfunction, the enrichment of mental health care and the enforcement of supporting system of surrounding people are essential, but how can we scrounge up the cost for these medical resources if costly molecular targeting drugs, which are to be developed in future, are administered to increasing elderly cancer patients? How can we maintain “public health insurance for the whole nation” that have been supporting the aging society in Japan. If we conclude it is necessary to differentiate cancer treatment strategy according to patients’ age, the question is “Is it really reasonable to determine the appropriateness of cancer treatment and differentiation of treatment strategy according to biological age alone?” I would like to examine and discuss the current situation and issues of medical administration based on the result of clinical trials targeting on the elderly patients.
Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/annonc/article-abstract/25/suppl_5/v7/2240129 by guest on 24 October 2019
ASIA & OCEANIA Joint Symposium ’KACO/CSCO/MOGA/SSO/JSMO’: ‘Comprehensive approaches for elderly cancer patients in an aging society from the perspectives in different countries’
© The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society for Medical Oncology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: [email protected].