LAUSR

The age defining “very elderly” patients has been determined according to the type of treatment administered, on the basis of the outcome of clinical trials. R‐CHOP can be administered until the age of 80. Beyond this, specific considerations should be taken into account, and this threshold has thus been used to define this population. Lymphoma in very elderly patients is common because approximately half of all lymphoma cases occur in patients more than 65 years old and one‐third of reported cases are aged over 75 years. The incidence of lymphoma in older patients has increased in recent years, probably more than that of young patients, as the population aged over 60 years is continuously expanding. Although recent results showed a trend during the nineties towards stabilization of lymphoma incidence for young patients, this is not the case for older patients simply because humans are living longer and the number of older patients is consequently increasing. Very few differences have been described between young and elderly lymphoma patients in morphology and clinical presentation. However, the outcome of elderly patients with lymphoma is worse, particularly for those with aggressive subtypes, because of the difficulties encountered during treatment and the difficulties related to the presence of other diseases, diminished organ functions, and altered