Edit researchproject

In this email you'll find a link that you can use to edit the project on the website.

Only researchers that belong to the project can edit their project.

Please use the selectlist below to indicate which researcher you are. When you click the button 'Edit project', an email will be sent to the email of the selected researcher.

Your name

Make a choice K.E. Broekman D. Touw dhr TH (Thijs) Oude Munnink dhr MV (Mark) van Bussel

Project properties

Title	Protein kinase inhibitor dosing schedules in elderly patients – comparison of clinical practice to clinical trials.
Keywords	protein kinase inhibitors elderly cancer patients real world dosing
Researchers	K.E. Broekman D. Touw dhr TH (Thijs) Oude Munnink dhr MV (Mark) van Bussel
Type of project	Stage Wetenschap / Researchproject of Stage Wetenschap / Researchproject
Nature of the research	Structured interview study
Fields of study	pharmacology oncology geriatrics

Background / introduction

Protein kinase inhibitors (PKIs) are oral anticancer agents that are used for treatment of various types of cancer. Their registration is based on phase 1-3 clinical trials, usually testing the maximum tolerated dose of these drugs. PKIs have side effects that can influence patients quality of life. In general, elderly cancer patients experience more side effects compared to younger patients. Clinical trial participants in general have a younger age and a better performance status compared to ‘real-world patients’ treated in clinical practice. On the other hand, the median age of the population of cancer patients that receive systemic treatment is increasing. Therefore, it is important to better investigate the use of anticancer therapies such as PKIs in the older population. It is the question if older patients are more prone to side effects from PKIs than younger patients, and if so, is there an association between the prescribed dose and the occurrence of side effects for PKIs? Could a lower starting dose lead to better treatment tolerability in older patients, with preserved efficacy?

Research question / problem definition
This research project aims to investigate the real-world prescribing patterns for PKIs in the older population, and compare these to the recommended dosing based on registrational clinical trials.

Workplan
Structured interviews will be performed among medical oncologists focusing on their use of PKIs in elderly patients with regards to prescribed dose and experience of side-effects. The dosing schedules used in clinical practice will be compared to the recommended dose for different PKIs.

References
Battisti et al. Targeted Therapies in Older Adults With Solid Tumors. J Clin Oncol 2021; 39: 2128-2137. DuMontier et al. Decision Making in Older Adults With Cancer. J Clin Oncol 2021; 39: 2164-2174.