The role of the geriatic (G8) health status screening tool in prediction of antitumor therapy complications in elderly patients

Introduction: The G8 Score is an important tool for geriatric assessment in current oncology practice. The G8 Score is applied as a prescreening method for selection of patients who need comprehensive geriatric assessment (CGA); however, this questionnaire has not been validated in Russia.

Study goal: To evaluate the reliability and predictive role of the Russian version of the G8 Score in evaluating the risk of complications of systemic antitumor therapy in elderly patients.

Materials and methods: The authors conducted a prospective non‑randomized study in elderly patients (≥ 65 years old) who received systemic antitumor therapy. All patients were screened using the Russian version of the G8 Score. Cases of adverse events during treatment (toxicity) and treatment discontinuation were analyzed. The area under the ROC curve (AUC) was used to evaluate the specificity and sensitivity of the Russian version of the G8 Score as a predictor of complications and complication‑associated events (treatment discontinuation) in cancer patients in Russia. The reliability of the Russian version of the G8 Score was also assessed using Cronbach»s alpha coefficient of internal consistency.

Results: The data of 133 cancer patients (57,1 % and 42,9 % of whom were female and male, respectively) with a mean age of 72,1 y. o. were analyzed using the Russian version of the G8 Score. The study demonstrated a satisfactory predictive ability of the tool in terms of prognosis of general toxicity, including hematologic and non‑hematologic toxicity, with the area under the curve (AUC) being 0,621 [95 % CI: 0,524–0,717]. The cut‑off value of the G8 Score was 13,5; sensitivity (Se) = 71 %, specificity (Sp) = 54 %. The characteristics of the positive and negative predictive values of the G8 Score were similar. The data on the predictive role of the Russian version of the G8 Score in terms of prognosis of toxicity‑related treatment discontinuation were not statistically significant (p > 0,05). The internal consistency of the Russian version of the G8 Score was demonstrated to be acceptable, with Cronbach»s alpha coefficient of 0,709 and split‑half values of α1 = 0,558 and α2 = 0,432. The results of the study indicated a satisfactory reliability of the Russian version of the G8 Score.

Conclusion: The Russian version of the G8 Score is a reliable tool that can be used as a possible predictor of toxicity of antitumor drug therapy and a useful tool for the selection of patients for comprehensive geriatric assessment.

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