Second malignancies among elderly survivors of cancer

The U.S. population is aging, life expectancy is increasing, and cancer is a disease associated with aging. Advances in screening and therapeutics have led to a growing number of cancer survivors who are at risk for the development of secondary malignancies. Although the risks for the development of second malignancies following a first diagnosis of cancer are well described for survivors of childhood malignancies, there are fewer data for malignancies common in older adults. With the aging of the U.S. population, and with improving survival statistics in many adult malignancies, there is an increasing need to identify those second malignancies that might develop in the older adult survivor of cancer. In this paper, we describe the types and rates of second malignancies following cancers commonly seen in older adults and review the literature on these malignancies. Comparisons are made between older and younger adults with regard to the risks for developing treatment-related cancers with different modalities. Recommendations for early detection of second malignancies are summarized, though there remains an unmet need for evidence-based guidelines for screening for second malignancies in the older adult in particular.