Cancer Prevention During Older Adulthood

CDC’s Division of Cancer Prevention and Control sponsored a supplemental issueexternal icon of The Gerontologist about ways to reduce cancer risk during older adulthood. The authors are experts from many different fields, showing the importance of working together to find effective ways to prevent cancer.

More than two-thirds of all new cancers are diagnosed among adults aged 60 years and older. As the number of adults living to older ages continues to increase, so too will the number of new cancer cases. In 2018, more than 1.7 million people were diagnosed with cancer. Without more efforts to prevent cancer, that number is expected to reach more than 2.2 million by 2050, with the largest percentage increase among adults who are 75 years old or older.

Cancer is usually caused by many factors over time. This means that even later in life, there will be opportunities to prevent or delay the onset of new cancers. Research suggests that we can do more as a society to reduce cancer risk and preserve health as adults enter their 60s, 70s, and beyond.

“The supplement sparked my own thinking about how we might go about developing a national prevention initiative for the 65-plus population that would span a variety of diseases, including cancer,” says Dr. Robyn Stone in this blog post.

Articles in the Supplement

• White MC, Holman DM, Goodman RA, Richardson LC. Cancer risk among older adults: time for cancer prevention to go silver.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S1–S6.
• Rudd RE. Health literacy considerations for new cancer prevention initiatives.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S7–S16.
• Holman DM, Ding H, Freeman MB, Shoemaker M. Association between sun protection behaviors and sunburn among U.S. adults.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S17–S27.
• Hooker K, Mejia ST, Phibbs S, Tan EJ, Stevens, J. Effects of age-discrimination on self-perceptions of aging and cancer risk behaviors.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S28–S37.
• Martin A, Eglit GML, Maldonado Y, Daly R, Liu J, Tu X, Jeste DV. Attitudes toward own aging among older adults: implications for cancer prevention.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S38–S49.
• Prohaska TR, Peters KE. Impact of natural disasters on health outcomes and cancer among older adults.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S50–S56.
• Kietzman KG, Toy P, Bravo RL, Duru OK, Wallace SP. Multi-sectoral collaborations to increase the recommended use of cancer screening and other clinical preventive services by older adults.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S57–S66.
• Schoenborn NL, Boyd C, Lee S, Cayea D, Pollack CE. Communicating about stopping cancer screening: comparing clinicians’ and older adults’ perspectives.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S67–S76.
• Warner DF, Koroukian SM, Schiltz N, Smyth KA, Cooper GS, Owusu C, Stange KC, Berger NA. Complex multimorbidity and breast cancer screening among midlife and older women: the role of perceived need.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S77–S87.
• Tucker-Seeley R, Thorpe R. Material-psychosocial-behavioral aspects of financial hardship: a conceptual model applied to cancer prevention research.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S88–S93.
• Cancer Prevention during Older Adulthood Writing Group. Highlights from an expert meeting on opportunities for cancer prevention among older adults.external icon The Gerontologist 2019;59(S1):S94–S101.