Turkish Journal of
GERIATRICS

Etlik City Hospital, Chest Diseases, Ankara, Turkiye DOI : 10.29400/tjgeri.2026.487 Introduction: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive, fatal lung disease of unknown cause, typically affecting older men, and limited to the lungs. During its clinical course, IPF is frequently associated with several comorbidities, among which lung cancer is one of the most significant. This study aimed to determine the frequency, epidemiological characteristics, prognostic implications, and management strategies of IPF? lung cancer (LC) in geriatrc patients within our clinical population. Materials and Method: The coexistence of lung cancer in patients diagnosed with IPF (Group 1) and non-IPF (Group 2) between September 2023 and June 2025 was retrospectively evaluated. In addition to demographic data, comorbidities, echocardiographic findings, histopathological cancer diagnosis, and administered treatments were recorded. Results: Lung cancer was detected in 13.2% of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis and 3.8% of those with non- idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (p = 0.098), with an overall prevalence of 7.7% among all patients. LC was only diagnosed in male patients with both groups. The most frequent histological subtype was squamous cell carcinoma, predominantly located in the left upper and right lower lobes. Only 29% of IPF patients with lung cancer had received antifibrotic therapy. Conclusion: In eldery patients, the coexistence of IPF and LC constitutes a high-risk phenotype associated with poor prognosis and increased management complexity. Given the complexity of management in this vulnerable population, systematic screening, early diagnosis, and individualized treatment strategies are of critical importance. Keywords : Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis; Lung Neoplasms; Aged; Lung Disease, Interstitial