Our Research
The Trustees will select topics taking into consideration published evidence available, gaps in knowledge that the trustees are aware of and areas of potential research identified to the trustees through a grant call.
It is anticipated that the majority of donations made to the charity will be restricted funds where the donor specifies the research based on the donors’ knowledge of the expertise of the trustees. In the limited occasion where the charity has unrestricted funds, the framework that the trustees will use is set out in our Grant Framework document.
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Minami and colleagues present a timely and methodologically rigorous qualitative analysis of treatment conversations between oncologists and women aged ≥70 years with early-stage, hormone receptor–positive breast cancer. By audio-recording consultations the authors capture real world decision making as it unfolds, addressing a key limitation of prior studies that relied on documentation or retrospective interviews
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Multidisciplinary team (MDT) meetings are central to treatment decisions in aortic stenosis (AS), particularly for borderline or high-risk patients. This study evaluates long-term, real-world outcomes according to MDT-selected management strategy within routine clinical practice in this clinically important patient group.
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Research by Benjamin Harris
December 2025
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Reflections on treatment decision making in older adults with cancer
by Michael Fertleman and Benjamin Harris
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This is a
timely and important contribution by examining electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) outcomes in the “oldest-old” (≥85 years), an age group that remains under represented in depression research and for whom pharmacological options are often limited by multimorbidity and adverse drug effects.
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Delirium remains one of the most common, distressing, and costly complications across the spectrum of clinical care.1 It is associated with increased morbidity and mortality, prolonged hospitalization, long-term cognitive decline, and substantial health system burden.2 Despite the availability of validated screening tools and clear guideline recommendations, delirium, particularly the hypoactive form, continues to be under-recognized in everyday practice. Nurses play a central role in detection, prevention, escalation, and treatment. The limitation lies not in clinical knowledge but in using tools, guidelines, and embedding them into everyday practice.
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Peripherally inserted central catheter lines are increasingly common as medical innervation advances. Peripherally inserted central catheter lines are generally well tolerated with few complications, the most common being pain, bleeding, line dislodgement or blockage. However, there are more serious complications such as line sepsis.
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We read with great interest the study by Grove et al, which offers an important and timely insight into analgesic prescribing among older adults admitted to skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) after hip fracture. The ability to capture dispensing within SNFs is a notable achievement and provides clarity on a phase of care where appropriate prescribing has long been assumed but rarely measured. The authors should be commended for addressing this gap and for producing findings with direct relevance not only to older adult practice but also to wider debates on safe opioid use in ageing populations.
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High fracture risk, limited evidence: rethinking osteoporosis treatment in chronic kidney disease
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Patient-led management approaches in older adults with advanced cancer: Implications for supportive and palliative oncology
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Multidisciplinary team (MDT) meetings are central to treatment decisions in aortic stenosis (AS), particularly for borderline or high-risk patients. This study evaluates long-term, real-world outcomes according to MDT-selected management strategy within routine clinical practice in this clinically important patient group.
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From co-design to sustainable practice: Reflections on inclusive physical activity for older adults
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ICeilings of treatment in hip fracture: a marker of vulnerability rather
than a cause of mortality
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The study by Akodu et al. examining the association
between time to surgery and mortality following hip
fracture repair in adults aged over 65 addresses a clinically
important and enduring question in orthogeriatric care.1
The inclusion of a frailty index alongside traditional
perioperative risk markers strengthens the analysis and
reflects contemporary understanding of vulnerability in
this population. However, caution is warranted in inter
preting the observed associations, as delays to surgery in
older adults frequently reflect necessary clinical stabili
sation rather than just avoidable system inefficiency.
Without accounting for the underlying reasons for delay, there is a risk of oversimplifying a complex care pathway and attributing causality where confounding by acute illness is also possible.