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Updated: May 24, 2025

Simultaneous Imaging and Flow-Cytometry-based Detection of Multiple Fluorescent Senescence Markers in Therapy-Induced Senescent Cancer Cells
Published on: July 12, 2022
The complex interplay between aging and cancer
Lucrezia A Trastus1, Fabrizio d'Adda di Fagagna2,3
1IFOM ETS-the AIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology, Milan, Italy. lucrezia.trastus@ifom.eu.
Abstract:
Cancer is an age-related disease, but the interplay between cancer and aging is complex and their shared molecular drivers are deeply intertwined. This Review provides an overview of how different biological pathways affect cancer and aging, leveraging evidence mainly derived from animal studies. We discuss how genome maintenance and accumulation of DNA mutations affect tumorigenesis and tissue homeostasis during aging. We describe how age-related telomere dysfunction and cellular senescence intricately modulate tumor development through mechanisms involving genomic instability and inflammation. We examine how an aged immune system and chronic inflammation shape tumor immunosurveillance, fueling DNA damage and cellular senescence. Finally, as animal models are important to untangling the relative contributions of these aging-modulated pathways to cancer progression and to test interventions, we discuss some of the limitations of physiological and accelerated aging models, aiming to improve experimental designs and enhance translation.
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