Abstract: Objective To observe the effect of thalidomide on the quality of life of geriatric tumor patients undergoing chemotherapy. Methods Geriatric tumor patients on chemotherapy were divided into two groups， with one receiving thalidomide（n=34）and the other receiving only chemotherapy（n=34）.The thalidomide dose was initially 100 mg/day before sleep，which was increased weekly by 50 mg to a final dose of 200 mg/day as long as the patients tolerated the side effects.If not，the original dose was maintained.The two groups were compared in terms of Kamofsky score，QOL score，sleep status，and diet status. Results The Kamofsky and QOL scores improved to a significantly greater extent in the thalidomide group than in the control group（P<0.05）.The thalidomide group showed a 58.8% improvement in sleep status and a 55.9% improvement in diet status， both of which were significantly greater than the corresponding improvements in the control group （both 29.4%，P<0.05）.Major adverse reactions were similar in both groups（P>0.05） and included marrow depression，nausea and vomiting，and constipation． Conclusion  Thalidomide can improve the quality of life in geriatric tumor patients on chemotherapy．

Key words: Thalidomide, Geriatric, Neoplasm, Chemotherapy, Quality of life