Background: Older adults constitute a significant proportion of cancer patients, yet physiological reserve varies widely. Frailty—a state of increased vulnerability to stressors—is common in this population and strongly predicts adverse treatment outcomes, functional decline, and severe toxicity. Despite its impact, frailty often goes unrecognised in routine oncology practice due to a lack of practical, standardized guidance. To address this gap, eviQ, the Cancer Institute NSW’s peer-reviewed, online consensus guideline platform, developed, in collaboration with the Geriatric Oncology Emerging Experts and Researchers Group (GOOER), a dedicated clinical resource and accompanying Rapid Learning module between 2024 and 2025 to support health professionals in identifying, assessing and managing frailty in older adults with cancer.
Resource Description: The eviQ ID 4614 Frailty and Cancer clinical resource provides point-of-care, evidence-based guidance for multidisciplinary teams caring for older patients. It outlines indications for frailty identification, recommends validated screening instruments, specifically the Geriatric-8 (G8) and Vulnerable Elders Survey (VES-13), and provides actionable care pathways following screening results. The complementary Rapid Learning module reinforces these principles through practical, implementation-focussed education.
Key Clinical Insights: The resource highlights that frailty is a dynamic and potentially reversible state rather than an inevitable consequence of aging. It emphasizes early screening prior to initiating systemic anti-cancer therapy (SACT) to establish baseline vulnerability. Key management strategies detailed in the resource span active prevention, referral pathways for Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA), rational SACT dose adjustments, prehabilitation, medication rationalisation, and explicit alignment with patient goals of care.
Benefits to Practice: By synthesizing complex geriatric oncology principles into a concise, accessible format, this resource empowers oncologists, nurses, and allied health professionals to move beyond chronological age and ECOG performance status. Standardising frailty screening fosters early multidisciplinary collaboration, reduces treatment-related toxicity, minimises unexpected hospitalisations, and ultimately delivers individualised, goal-congruent care for older Australians living with cancer.