Cancer diagnoses are associated with a lower risk for subsequent dementia diagnosis, with the relationship strongest for cancers with poor prognoses, underscoring the need to investigate biological and survival-related mechanisms linking cancer and dementia.

Key considerations that both clinicians and survivors face when using cannabis to relieve pain and other symptoms. 

Key considerations that both clinicians and survivors face when using cannabis to relieve pain and other symptoms.

A new article from Medscape examines how many cancer survivors face health challenges similar to “accelerated aging” – including early heart disease, frailty, and other conditions. If you’re a survivor, consider sharing this article with your primary care doctor. It’s a powerful way to help them understand what survivorship really means.

Survivorship follow-up care is currently a much debated topic. Questions such as, “Who is in charge of my care now that treatment is completed?” are commonly asked by survivors, and the answers are varied and often confusing. This article addresses many of those questions. It includes comments from Dr. Kevin Oeffinger, who has worked tirelessly to create quality care for survivors.

Childhood cancer survivors face accelerated aging, with studies showing they develop serious health conditions nearly 18 years earlier than the general population. Even without radiation therapy, survivors remain at higher risk for secondary cancers and cardiovascular disease, underscoring the lasting impact of chemotherapy and other treatments. While survival rates have improved and new guidelines, care tools, and therapies are helping, long-term risks persist, making lifelong follow-up and protective strategies essential.

A new AI program developed at Cedars‑Sinai’s Smidt Heart Institute can detect early signs of tricuspid valve disease through routine echocardiograms, with accuracy on par with expert cardiologists. Trained on over 47,000 echo scans from 2011 to 2021, it can now classify disease severity from mild to severe. This advancement could help clinicians spot and treat valve problems earlier, giving patients a better shot at timely care and improved outcomes.

A major new study from the Childhood Cancer Survivor Study shows that AYA (Adolescent and Young Adult) cancer survivors continue to face excess health risks well into their 50s and beyond. Even decades after treatment, conditions like heart disease, frailty, and other chronic illnesses remain more common among survivors than in the general population. This is especially important for Hodgkin lymphoma survivors who were treated as teens or young adults and may not have regular follow-up care today.

Cancer survivors face a 14% higher risk of developing entirely new cancers (secondary malignancies) compared to the general population, and they account for nearly 19% of all cancer diagnoses in the U.S. Oncology Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) highlight that past treatments, especially radiation and certain chemotherapies like alkylating agents, platinum-based drugs, anthracycline topoisomerase II inhibitors, and even targeted therapies, can contribute to long-term risk.

New research from a large study in Denmark and Sweden, shows that adult survivors of childhood cancer, including those treated for Hodgkin lymphoma, may be at greater risk for severe illness from COVID-19. This increased vulnerability is likely linked to lasting effects from cancer treatments, such as weakened immune systems or damage to organs like the lungs and heart.