Clinical outcomes of the management of basal cell carcinomas in individuals aged 90 years and over: a retrospective cohort study.

This article focuses on a retrospective cohort study examining the management and survival outcomes of basal cell carcinoma (BCC) in patients aged 90 years and older referred to secondary care. The study found that median overall survival was nearly three years, with age over 93 years and a diagnosis of dementia independently associated with worse survival, while other comorbidities showed no significant impact. Treatment, primarily surgery or radiotherapy, was linked to improved survival compared to no treatment, supporting active management in most elderly patients referred to secondary care. The findings suggest that conservative approaches may be appropriate for patients over 93 years old, those with dementia, or those with larger lesions (≥10 mm), emphasizing the role of multidisciplinary team discussions and frailty assessment tools such as the Rockwood Clinical Frailty Scale in guiding treatment decisions.