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Boomers and Cancer

By Medstar

The first wave of baby boomers are now old enough for Social Security. But their age also puts them at an increased risk for cancer. Boomers and Cancer

Published: Thu, December 13, 2007 - 8:54 am Last Updated: Thu, December 13, 2007 - 9:41 am

The first baby boomers have hit their 60's...an age when the risk of cancer starts to rise. In fact, a new dual medical specialty is emerging to cope with the large number of people who could develop the disease.
"Geriatric Oncology is something that's just now being recognized nationally as an area that people need to pay more attention to."
Doctors are learning that cancer gets more complex with age.
"What we're realizing is that older people with cancer may have other issues that impact the treatment of their cancer and the cancer, of course, impacts many of their other issues."
Dr. Ilene Browner helped launch the new Geriatric Oncology program at Johns Hopkins. She says there needs to be more cancer studies on older people.
"Now we're beginning to understand that, yes, we need to put those patients in our trials even if they have other illnesses. Even if they get toxicity because those are patients we are treating and we need to see it, how those treatments work and what the outcomes are in the long term and the short term, so we can affect quality and quantity of life."
Dr. Shapiro compares aging to walking a tight rope with cancer waiting to push you off.
"A lot of what we're trying to do in this program is to assess who might be able to be, who might be pushed off the tightrope easily, so that we can try to take necessary precautions and help people make decisions on how to be treated and sometimes even whether the cancer is enough of an issue for them that it needs to be treated."
Boomers can thank cancer patients like Sarah Daniels. What doctors learn from her now may improve treatment of the disease down the road.
Baby boomers include those born between 1946 and 1964. Some cancer and aging experts estimate that, in 20 years, 70 percent of all cancers will occur in people 65 and older. You can reduce your risk by eating healthy, exercising and getting the appropriate screening tests.

Fast Facts:
This year, 1.44 million new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S.
77 percent of cancers are diagnosed in people 55 and older.
Older cancer patients often have chronic age-related conditions, like heart disease, diabetes and arthritis, making treatment more complex.
Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center has developed the Geriatric Oncology program to support older cancer patients and improve treatment outcomes.