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Navigating the Cancer Screening Decision for Patients with Dementia

  • Palliative Medicine (A Jatoi, Section Editor)
  • Published:
Current Oncology Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

The risks of developing cancer and dementia both increase with age, giving rise to the complex question of whether continued cancer screening for older dementia patients is appropriate. This paper offers a practice-based clinical approach to determine an answer to this challenging question.

Recent Findings

There is no consensus on the prevalence of cancer and dementia as co-diagnoses. Persons with dementia are screened less often compared to those without dementia. There is significant literature focusing on screening in the geriatric population, but there is little evidence to support decision-making for screening for older patients with dementia.

Summary

Given this lack of evidence, individualized decisions should be made in collaboration with patients and family caregivers. Four considerations to help guide this process include prognosis, behavioral constraints, cognitive capacity, and goals for care. Future research will be challenging due to variability of factors that inform screening decisions and the vulnerable nature of this patient population.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital, One Gustave Levy L. Place, Box 1070, New York, NY, 10029, USA

    Caitlyn Kuwata, Suzanne L. Goldhirsch & Vanessa Rodríguez

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  1. Caitlyn Kuwata
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  2. Suzanne L. Goldhirsch
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  3. Vanessa Rodríguez
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Correspondence to Caitlyn Kuwata.

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Kuwata, C., Goldhirsch, S.L. & Rodríguez, V. Navigating the Cancer Screening Decision for Patients with Dementia. Curr Oncol Rep 23, 90 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11912-021-01083-1

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