Role of Frailty and Comorbidity in Determination of Operability for Patients With Oral and Oropharyngeal Squamous Cell Carcinoma

AbstractPurpose of ReviewTo review the role of frailty and comorbidities in determining operability and associated outcomes in patients with oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma.Recent FindingsFrailty and comorbidity have been linked to multiple adverse outcome measures including risk of mortality, surgical complications, length of stay, intensity of care needs, discharge disposition, risk of readmission, and cost of healthcare delivery. There are diverse objective and validated measures of comorbidity and frailty. Addition of comorbidity and objective frailty measurements has been demonstrated to improve predictive power of nomograms and clinical staging systems for patients with oral and oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma. The use of predictive tools that assess frailty may contribute to shared decision making, realistic expectations, and facilitation of appropriate level of care. While emerging literature supports the role of prehabilitation, there is paucity of data in support of such interventions for patients afflicted by oral and oropharyngeal cancer.SummaryFrailty assesses operability beyond anatomic resectability and incorporates key determinants of physical, nutritional, and cognitive well-being. Objective measurements of frailty predict meaningful outcomes following surgery for cancers of the oral cavity and oropharynx. This paper suggests that clinicians should objectively and routinely assess frailty, which may facilitate patient counseling, improved...
Source: Current Otorhinolaryngology Reports - Category: ENT & OMF Source Type: research