Survivors of childhood cancer in higher heart attacks, stroke and more cancer

A newly heartfelt study found that childhood cancer survivors are nearly three times more likely to develop aging related diseases compared to the general population.

Cancer is the number one cause of death from children and adolescents in the United States. Meanwhile, about 500,000 individuals have survived childhood cancer in the US, as the study says, “these survivors hold a significant load of morbidity.”

And while someone can immediately assume that it is due to exposure to radiation during treatment, the study found that this is not the case.

The researchers estimated 22,585 participants who were diagnosed with cancer before the age of 21, survived 5 years after diagnosing and treated between 1970 and 1999.

They proved that childhood cancer survivors had 2.7 times more likely than other people to develop one of the eight health conditions before 65: breast cancer, colorectal cancer, glial tumors, sarcomas, heart failure, coronary myocardial infarction, stroke and valvular disease.

Further, the beginning of these conditions occurred, on average, 17.7 years ago than the general population.

In the general population, 20% of patients developed at least one of these conditions up to the age of 65; But among the survivors of childhood cancer, that threshold was reached at the age of 47, revealing a significant acceleration in aging.

Survivors of childhood cancer who reached the age of 40 also had a higher 6.2-fold risk of developing a new condition within 10 years.

Up to 65, over half of the survivors (55%) were expected to develop at least one of the eight conditions.

The risk of developing these conditions was higher among survivors treated with radiation therapy. However, even among survivors who were not exposed to radiation, the risk remained significantly higher when compared to the general population.

Based on age -related risks, nearly half (45.6%) of cancer survivors were projected to die up to the age of 65, compared to only 15% of the total population.

The longevity for survivors of five-year-old childhood cancer has increased continuously. The average life expectancy for adults in the general population is 80; Life expectancy for those treated for childhood cancer in the 1970s is 48.5 years; Those treated in the 1980s have a life expectancy of 53.7 years, while those treated in the 90s increased to 57.1 years.

Researchers hope that these findings will galvanize healthcare providers to implement early cancer strategies and cardiovascular prevention for all survivors decades before the general population.

Dr. Lenat Juffe, a Northwell health doctor in pediatric endocrinology, said the bright side of this study is that much more children with cancer are surviving longer than they would in the past.

“Advances in the treatment of pediatric cancer over the past few decades have led to over 85% of children and adolescents diagnosed with cancer that survive at least five years,” she told the post. “However, exposure to life -saving treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation and others can have significant long -term health effects.”

According to the cause of children’s cancer, in 2024, approximately 9,600 children aged 0-14 and 5,300 adolescents (15-19) were diagnosed with cancer.

Recent research has found that exposure to “permanently” chemicals produced can change the biological development of children and contribute to the development of childhood cancers.

Studies show that chemicals inhibit the body’s ability to metabolize glucose, bile acid and branched chain acids, resulting in unhealthy levels of fat accumulation. Previous studies have linked chemicals permanently to liver cancer.

Evaporation residues are also thought to cause cancer in young people.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (all) is the most common form of leukemia found in children and accounts for about 30% of all pediatric cancers.

The disease affects the immature white blood cells, called lymphocytes, which identify and destroy foreign proteins in the body. However, with all, the bone marrow makes many immature lymphocytes that do not mature correctly and cannot fight the infection, according to the Philadelphia Children’s Hospital (CHOP).