Older women as the focus for research and treatment of ovarian cancer. An overview for the National Institute on Aging, National Cancer Institute, and American Cancer Society Multidisciplinary Working Conference.

Ovarian cancer disproportionately affects women 65 years of age and older who are likely to have concomitant changes in physical ability, physiological functioning, and other chronic conditions associated with advancing age. The National Institute on Aging, National Cancer Institute, and the American Cancer Society cosponsored a multidisciplinary working conference, "Perspectives on Ovarian Cancer in Older-Aged Women: Current Knowledge and Recommendations for Research," at the National Institutes of Health on November 20-21, 1991 to confront the age-related aspects of ovarian cancer in epidemiology, etiology, clinical investigations, and patient management. Conference participants devoted attention to such special topics as drug resistance, dose intensity, patterns of care, and screening potential for ovarian cancer. After exploring these areas with existing data, the task was then to generate recommendations for research and practice. The scope of the conference and an introduction to the proceedings are presented in this paper.