Cancer and aging have common ground

Healthy Aging

Aging and cancer

We all want to live our longest, healthiest lives. While aging involves the progressive breakdown of our bodies over time, it is the onset of chronic diseases that most compromises our quality of life. In the U.S., the most common cause of mortality is heart disease, followed closely by cancer. We have talked a lot about the most recent science around heart disease. This week, in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, let’s turn our attention to cancer.

Why does cancer risk increase with age?

As we get older, the risk of cancer goes up. This is because damaged cells that occur with aging also increase the risk of triggering cancer. As described by Bhatia et al. in Geriatric Oncology, examples of cell damage that drive both aging and cancer include the following:

• Damaged DNA. While our cellular DNA is constantly damaged, we have natural mechanisms to repair DNA and keep our cells healthy. As we get older, however, our DNA repair shops don’t work as well. This results in poorly functioning, renegade cells that contribute to both aging and cancer.
• Epigenetic alterations. Epigenetic alterations are basically wrenches thrown into our DNA that can change how our genes function, including accelerating cellular aging and turning off genes that suppress tumors.
• Altered intercellular communication. As we age, our cells can send mixed signals to each other (or stop communicating altogether), resulting in unbalanced metabolism and a chronic inflammatory state that is a pillar of aging-related breakdown. Similarly, Degboe et al. describe how cancer cells can become a signaling magnet for inflammatory cells (called macrophages), which can further promote tumor growth.

Cancer can accelerate aging.

The good news is that cancer survival rates are increasing due to advances in prevention, detection, and intervention. With growing populations of cancer survivors, Bhatia et al. review recent studies showing that cancer survivors, however, may age faster than the general population.

This means that cancer survivors may be more susceptible to other aging-related diseases at younger ages than the general population. As such, an increasing effort is being made on the science front to help cancer survivors live even longer and healthier lives.

So, how do I prevent cancer?

The American Cancer Society gives the following tips to help prevent cancer:

Actionable details for each of these tips is provided on the American Cancer Society’s website.