US cancer survivors living longer

As the American population ages, more older adults will survive cancer and live with other chronic conditions that will burden the health care system, U.S. government health officials report.
"Increasingly, we are seeing the impact of an aging population -- fueled by maturing baby boomers -- on major diseases, including cancer," said lead researcher Shirley Bluethmann, a cancer prevention fellow at the U.S. National Cancer Institute.
In 2016, nearly 62 percent of almost 16 million cancer survivors are aged 65 or older, the researchers said. By 2040, an estimated 73 percent of 26 million cancer survivors will be 65 or older.
"This steady and dramatic growth will affect the health care system, and so is sometimes referred to as the 'silver tsunami,' " Bluethmann said. "It not only has implications for older people who are at higher risk for cancer, it also means that we will have higher numbers of older patients with complex health needs."
In the face of this challenge, health care providers will have to build collaborative care teams -- including doctors, nurses and other caregivers -- to be able to respond to the needs of this vulnerable population, Bluethmann noted.
"We also need to emphasize the benefits of lifestyle for cancer prevention and control across the life course," she added.
"Lifestyle choices, including doing regular exercise and maintaining a healthy weight, may prevent some kinds of cancer, but also offer many benefits in preserving function, reducing symptoms and promoting a high quality of life into old age," Bluethmann said. For the study, Bluethmann and her colleagues used federal health data from 1975 to 2012. With Census data, they projected the incidence of cancer from 2016 to 2040.
      HealthDay

US cancer survivors living longer

As the American population ages, more older adults will survive cancer and live with other chronic conditions that will burden the health care system, U.S. government health officials report. Increasingly, we are seeing the impact of an aging population -- fueled by maturing baby boomers -- on major diseases, including cancer, said lead researcher Shirley Bluethmann, a cancer prevention fellow at the U.S. National Cancer Institute. In 2016, nearly 62 percent of almost 16 million cancer survivors are aged 65 or older, the researchers said. By 2040, an estimated 73 percent of 26 million cancer survivors will be 65 or older. This steady and dramatic growth will affect the health care system, and so is sometimes referred to as the silver tsunami, Bluethmann said. It not only has implications for older people who are at higher risk for cancer, it also means that we will have higher numbers of older patients with complex health needs. In the face of this challenge, health care providers will have to build collaborative care teams -- including doctors, nurses and other caregivers -- to be able to respond to the needs of this vulnerable population, Bluethmann noted. We also need to emphasize the benefits of lifestyle for cancer prevention and control across the life course, she added. Lifestyle choices, including doing regular exercise and maintaining a healthy weight, may prevent some kinds of cancer, but also offer many benefits in preserving function, reducing symptoms and promoting a high quality of life into old age, Bluethmann said. For the study, Bluethmann and her colleagues used federal health data from 1975 to 2012. With Census data, they projected the incidence of cancer from 2016 to 2040. HealthDay