[joglynne]

I know he was a tad older than 50 but my Dad was diagnosed with stomach cancer at 82. He was accepted by The Christie because he was very fit and active and the surgeon commented that he wouldn't have operated on him, or a younger person if he didn't consider them to be fit enough to survive long enough to lead an active life after what was a very long surgical procedure with gruelling post-operative medical treatments to be expected afterwards.

If Doctors/Surgeons are being judged on results then, to a certain extent, I can understand their reluctance to put themselves in to the position where they are judged as failing just because they don't have a high success rate when they can opt to pick younger and healthier patients off the waiting lists who presumably will survive longer after being treated.