The age of cancer | Nature

ABSTRACT A striking link exists between advanced age and increased incidence of cancer. Here I review how several of the age-related molecular and physiological changes might act in concert

to promote cancer, and in particular epithelial carcinogenesis. Experimental data indicate that the aged, cancer-prone phenotype might represent the combined pathogenetic effects of mutation

load, epigenetic regulation, telomere dysfunction and altered stromal milieu. Further verification of the role of these effects should in turn lead to the design of effective therapeutics

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institutional subscriptions * Read our FAQs * Contact customer support SIMILAR CONTENT BEING VIEWED BY OTHERS THE COMPLEX INTERPLAY BETWEEN AGING AND CANCER Article 04 March 2025 AGE

INFLUENCES ON THE MOLECULAR PRESENTATION OF TUMOURS Article Open access 11 January 2022 AN INTEGRATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE AGE-ASSOCIATED MULTI-OMIC LANDSCAPE ACROSS CANCERS Article Open access

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Download references ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I apologize to my colleagues whose relevant work I was unable to cite owing to space and reference limitations. I thank J. Vijg, D. Hanahan, J. Campisi,

J.-P. Issa, N. Schreiber-Agus, G. Merlino, S. Mellis, L. Chin, S. Weiler and members of my laboratory for helpful discussions and critical comments. R.A.D. is supported by the National

Institutes of Health and is an American Cancer Society Research Professor and a Steven and Michele Kirsch Foundation Investigator. AUTHOR INFORMATION AUTHORS AND AFFILIATIONS * Departments

of Adult Oncology, Medicine and Genetics Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, 02115, Massachusetts, USA Ronald A. DePinho Authors * Ronald A. DePinho View author

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