Cancer and ageing: a nexus at several levels

Abstract

Cancer is largely a disease of older people. With the relatively recent expansive growth within the geriatric population, a number of pressing biological and clinical questions that currently remain unanswered need to be addressed. These include what effect age itself has on the development or growth of cancer, and what are the benefits and risks of cancer prevention and treatment for the older person? New insights into the underlying biological processes of ageing provide a frame of reference for addressing these and other related questions.