The elderly population. Opportunities for cancer prevention and detection

Interest in the elderly population, persons 65 years of age or older, as a target group for cancer control has not been great. Age recommendations rarely are made for prevention and early detection of cancer for elderly persons. However, cancer incidence and mortality rates are known to rise rapidly with increasing age. This paper takes a long-term public-health perspective to look toward the year 2030 to discuss the challenges of organizing and implementing prevention and early detection incentives for our nation's current and future elderly population. Cancer prevalence estimates in the context of the geriatric imperative of the 21st century are provided for three cancers--breast, prostate, and lung and bronchus. The sheer magnitude of numbers created by the aged population expansion can greatly increase the number of cancer survivors and newly diagnosed cases. Current efforts in cancer prevention and early detection should anticipate the health-care demands of the elderly in the first three decades of the next century.