Care of the Older Person with Cancer toolkit
The Victorian Integrated Cancer Services (VICS) Care of the Older Person with Cancer Toolkit helps clinicians and health services operationalise new approaches to caring for older people with cancer.
This toolkit is intended for oncologists, geriatricians, cancer care coordinators, nurse practitioners, allied health professionals, and operational executives/managers working to provide optimal cancer care for older people.
Care of the Older Person with Cancer Toolkit (4th edition) now available
The 4th edition of the VICS Care of the Older Person with Cancer Toolkit [PDF] is now available. This updated toolkit, developed by Hume Regional Integrated Cancer Service (HRICS) and the Southern Melbourne Integrated Cancer Service (SMICS), supports improved care and outcomes for older people with cancer by aligning recommendations with the Optimal Care Pathway for older people with cancer (published in 2025). The toolkit includes practical resources, service examples, and workforce education to support the delivery of tailored, high quality optimal care. In addition to the updated toolkit, the VICS have developed a geriatric assessment checklist [PDF]. This simple, practical checklist is designed to ensure all key areas of optimal care are addressed.
Both the toolkit and the assessment checklist are available as downloadable PDFs.
Care of the Older Person with Cancer Toolkit resources
What’s included in the toolkit?
- Information about geriatric screening and assessment, with links to further tools and
resources to support delivery - Practical suggestions to identify and address existing barriers
- Examples of geriatric oncology services that have been implemented in Australian health services
- Key resources, including links to calculators, how-to guides, guidelines, education opportunities, patient resources, and additional considerations.
History of the toolkit
The Care of the Older Person with Cancer Toolkit was first published in 2022 following extensive consultation with subject matter experts and those involved in service delivery, including clinicians, VICS staff, and the Victorian Department of Health. Since its initial release, the toolkit has undergone formal review three times. Our reviews help to ensure the toolkit remains current, relevant, and effective. Now in its fourth iteration, the latest version of the toolkit has been developed to support implementation of the Optimal Care Pathway for Older People with Cancer (OCP). The toolkit also aligns with the key focus areas of the Victorian Cancer Plan 2024–2028.
Acknowledgments
The review process for the VICS Care of the Older Person with Cancer Toolkit has been led by staff from HRICS and the SMICS, with significant support from a dedicated VICS Care of the Older Person Special Interest Group. This toolkit has been developed to support clinicians and health services to care for older people with cancer. As a network, we are here to support you. If you have feedback or a question about the toolkit, please reach out to your local Integrated Cancer Service or the toolkit project team.
VICS toolkit project team
Sian Wright, Project Lead – Cancer Service Improvement, HRICS
Tracey Bucki, Senior Project Manager, SMICS
Additional external resources to support optimal care of older people with cancer
VICS Care of the older person with cancer toolkit: Feedback form
The Care of the Older Person with Cancer Toolkit was developed to support the implementation and improvement of specialised services for people with cancer who are aged 70 and over, or 50 and over for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The VICS welcomes your feedback on the toolkit. If you have a comment or suggestion, we'd love to hear it. Please complete the form below.
