Adolescents are more likely to die from cancer – Research
While the five-year survival in adolescents and young adults was slightly better than children, they tend to die earlier than children, particularly those with blood cancer.
While the five-year survival in adolescents and young adults was slightly better than children, they tend to die earlier than children, particularly those with blood cancer.
Adolescents and young adults who suffer from cancer have lower survival rates than young children, a study has shown. The Lancet Europe-wide study that was released on May 26th 2016 analysed data from 27 countries, 57,000 childhood cancers and nearly 312,000 cancers in teenagers and young adults.
The study indicated a general improvement on survival, with the overall number of survivors living five years after diagnosis rising steadily. While the five-year survival in adolescents and young adults was slightly better than children, they tend to die earlier than children, particularly those with blood cancers.
Diagnosis and cancer treatment
Cancer Research UK said it was crucial to find out what was going wrong but scientists believe that delays in diagnosis and treatment and a lack of clinical trials for that age group may be the cause of this.
Answering these questions is a big part of the reason why the cancer Research UK Kids and Teens Campaign was launched.
While the results may not be generalized to represent situations in other countries, teens and young adults suffering from cancer world over face lots of challenges.
“Every hour, a young person is diagnosed with Cancer, their survival outcomes are inferior, their access to clinical trials are often lacking or fragmented. Their disease and its consequences are uniquely different from children and adults,” notes Teen Cancer America.
Avoid risky behaviour
If they have to prolong their life, teens and young adults have been advised to avoid specific risky behavior such as smoking and lack of physical activity, especially after undergoing treatment.
“Young people that have undergone treatment should be given advise about the risk involved after receiving treatment for the cancer, and take up measures to limit future risks,” says Dr.C. Berger (CHU St-Etienne).
