(This is an excerpt of the Health Rounds newsletter, where we present latest medical studies on Tuesdays and Thursdays.)
By Nancy Lapid
April 3 (Reuters) – Doctors should not automatically rule out surgery for octogenarians with early-stage lung cancer, according to a new study that challenges longstanding assumptions about age and cancer treatment and could affect future guidelines.
In some cases, people over age 80 can safely undergo potentially curative surgery for these tumors and achieve outcomes comparable to those in younger patients, researchers reported in The Lancet Regional Health – Americas.
“As our population ages, more patients over 80 are being diagnosed with early-stage lung cancer, yet they are often not considered for surgery,” study leader Dr. Raja Flores of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York said in a statement.
“Our findings show that when patients are carefully selected based on their overall health, not just their age, they can tolerate surgery well and experience excellent long-term outcomes.”
The study followed 884 patients who had surgery for early-stage lung cancer, including some who were at least 80 years old.
Five years later, the survival rate among the 114 older patients ages 81 to 85 was 84.2%, statistically similar to the 87.3% survival rate among the younger patients.
While some of the older patients had more postoperative complications, most patients in both groups felt better over time, and their quality of life improved within a year, the researchers reported.
The findings suggest that lung-cancer screening guidelines should include patients who are over 80 years old, the researchers said.
“Our study highlights the importance of making sure all patients are evaluated based on their overall health, not just their age,” study coauthor Dr. Emanuela Taioli, also of the Icahn School of Medicine, said in a statement.
“We must ensure that effective treatments are available to everyone who can benefit from them. Older adults are often left out of clinical decisions, but our findings show they should have equal access to care that can improve survival and quality of life.”
KRATOM-RELATED POISONINGS SURGING IN US
Overdoses of kratom, a psychoactive herbal supplement often sold at gas stations and vape shops, have surged over the past decade, a U.S. study found.
Kratom-related calls to 53 poison control centers climbed from 258 cases in 2015 to 3,434 in 2025, an increase of more than 1,200%, according to data published in the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Kratom is a plant native to Southeast Asia, where it has traditionally been used to help with pain relief, boost mood, and ease opioid withdrawal symptoms.
In the U.S., it’s sold in various forms, including powders, tablets, gummies, and energy shots.
An estimated 1.7 million Americans aged 12 and older used kratom in 2021, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s National Survey on Drug Use and Health.
Most of the calls to poison control centers during the study period involved males and adults aged 20 to 39, although the fastest growth was among those aged 40 to 59, the report said.
Hospitalizations for kratom went from 43 in 2015 to 538 in 2025, a 1,150% increase, the researchers also found.
Overall, they documented 233 deaths linked to kratom exposure, the majority involving other substances.
Study leader Dr. Chris Holstege from UVA Health’s Blue Ridge Poison Center in Virginia said he and his colleagues are seeing the national pattern repeated in their local clinical practice, with more patients having serious complications after using kratom products.
“We want the public to be aware that these products contain chemicals of varying concentrations… that have complex pharmacological actions and can cause drug interactions and adverse consequences in humans,” Holstege said in a statement.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has warned the public to avoid kratom in general and in particular 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH), a potent psychoactive chemical found in high concentrations in kratom products.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is reviewing whether to classify 7-OH as a Schedule I substance, putting it on a par with drugs like heroin.
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(Reporting by Nancy Lapid; additional reporting by Shawana Alleyne-Morris; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
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