Longitudinal trajectories of frailty and cognitive decline among older Korean cancer survivors

Abstract

This study aimed to identify frailty trajectories among older adults diagnosed with cancer, as well as the impacts of frailty trajectories on cognitive decline at an eight-year follow-up. We used longitudinal data from the Korean Longitudinal Study of Aging. A total of 173 older Korean cancer survivors were included in our analysis. Frailty and cognitive function were assessed using the multi-domain frailty index and the Korean version of the mini mental state examination, respectively. Latent class growth modeling and multivariate logistic regression were employed. Two distinct frailty trajectories were identified: "low and stable" (75.1%) and "moderate and increasing" (24.9%). Older cancer survivors in the "moderate and increasing" frailty group were 4.89 times more likely to experience cognitive decline at the eight-year follow-up than their counterparts in the "low and stable" frailty group. Periodic evaluation and timely management of frailty could contribute to preventing cognitive decline among older cancer survivors.

Keywords: Cancer survivors; Cognitive function; Frailty; Longitudinal; Older adults.