Polypharmacy Linked to Higher Hospitalization Rates Among Older Adults With Cancer

A study published in the Journal of Geriatric Oncology found that use of five or more prescription medications before initiation of IV chemotherapy is associated with higher rates of inpatient hospitalizations among older adults with cancer, reports Healio . The researchers looked at subjects 65 and older diagnosed with lung, breast, or prostate cancer. Those with lung cancer took a median 11 medications in the six months before chemotherapy, followed by a median 10 medications among men with prostate cancer and a median nine medications among those with breast cancer. Men with prostate cancer who took between five and nine medications before chemotherapy, compared with fewer than five, had a 42 percent higher rate of hospitalization — whereas those who took between 10 and 14 medications had a 75 percent higher rate and those who took 15 or more had a 114 percent higher rate. The rate of hospitalization among those with lung cancer was 36 percent higher among those who took between five and nine medications, 49 percent higher among those who took between 10 and 14 medications, and 82 percent higher among those who took 15 or more medications, versus those who took less than five medications. People with breast cancer who took between five and nine medications before chemotherapy had a 17 percent higher rate of hospitalization compared with those who took less than five — whereas those who took between 10 and 14 had a 61 percent higher rate, while those who took 15 or more had a 101 percent higher rate.