From the cost of chronic conditions to risk of getting prostate cancer, researchers have used the 45 and Up Study’s data to investigate important health issues this year. Here are some of the highlights from 2022:
Heart attack survivors fall through the medicine cracks
Less than one-third of people who survive a heart attack are taking protective medications 12 months later, according to Australian research based on 45 and Up Study data.
Researchers from the George Institute in Sydney analysed medication use in 14,200 people who were hospitalised for a first heart attack.
While they found that overall, nearly 30% of participants were still taking both medicines after 12 months, that number dropped to just 7% for survivors who weren’t on either of the medications before their heart attack.
Prior medication use had the strongest impact on whether people took both medicines after their heart attack, even after accounting for age, sex, education and income.
Out-of-pocket costs hurt those with chronic conditions
A series of research papers from the University of Technology, Sydney, show how out-of-pocket costs can quickly mount up for older Australians with chronic conditions.
One study surveyed 800 women from the 45 and Up Study with osteoarthritis. It found that, on average, the women – who were aged between 53 and 94 – had more than seven appointments with healthcare practitioners in a year for their condition.
The total out-of-pocket costs for these appointments, therapies and medications was $673 per person each year. With 31% of women aged over 50 affected by osteoarthritis, the study authors estimated that total out-of-pocket costs for this condition were $873 million per year.
Another study from the same team looked at out-of-pocket costs for older Australians living with the effects of a stroke and found the average cost to be $386 per year.
Managing fatigue in stroke survivors the key to a healthier life
Research on stroke survivors has revealed that fatigue is closely tied to depression and a lower quality of life, as well as a person’s chance of another stroke.
The research comes from two studies from the University of Technology, Sydney, both of which used data from the 45 and Up Study, including a survey of 576 stroke survivors.
One study found a significant link between fatigue, disability, depression and quality of life in stroke survivors. The greater the disability in a stroke survivor, the great the level of fatigue reported.
The second study found that a person’s fatigue and depression scores were both associated with modifiable risk factors for a secondary stroke.
Melanoma history, vasectomy and obesity linked with prostate cancer
Men who have had multiple melanomas are at least twice as likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer than men who have never had melanomas, according to new research from the Daffodil Centre using data from the Sax Institute’s 45 and Up Study.
The study is the first to show that the link between melanoma and subsequent risk of prostate cancer is real, and not just a result of increased medical monitoring after a melanoma diagnosis.
Looking at data of nearly 100,000 men from the 45 and Up Study, researchers found that men with any history of melanoma had a 32% increased risk of later being diagnosed with prostate cancer, compared to men with no melanoma history.
This followed earlier research by the same team that found having a vasectomy or being obese are both linked to an increased risk of advanced prostate cancer.
Why women with lung cancer live longer than men
Men have a 43% greater risk of dying from lung cancer than women, with cancer treatment being the most influential factor in this difference, according to recent research.
The study from the Daffodil Centre, a joint venture between the University of Sydney and Cancer Council NSW, looked at 1130 participants with lung cancer from the 45 and Up Study. It found that the median survival time for women was 1.28 years after diagnosis, while for men it was 0.77 years.
Receiving cancer treatment within six months of diagnosis accounted for half the difference in survival rates. This could partly be due to a lower proportion of men having surgery within six months than women (17% versus 25%), study authors suggest.
Women with lung cancer may also respond to chemotherapy better than men, as the survival advantage was shown across all stages of lung cancer.
Cohort update from the 45 and Up Study
More than 210,000 participants in the 45 and Up Study are alive and enrolled, with data linkages allowing almost complete follow-up of all participants, according to the Cohort Profile Update.
The update, published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, outlined the key characteristics of the cohort at June 2021 and at each survey since its launch in 2005. It highlighted the value of the Study’s data – it has been used by more than 800 researchers – and detailed the cohort’s diversity across age, education and region of residence.
What’s next for the 45 and Up Study?
2023 is set to be another big year for the Study, with the fourth wave of core surveys going out to all participants. If you’d like to stay up-to-date on the Study, sign up for our newsletter or explore more of the research here.
