Cancer and aging
- Submission status
- Open
- Submission deadline
The risk of developing cancer increases dramatically with age. Incidence rates roughly double from the age of 50 to 60, and again from the age of 60 to 80. After the age of 65, the approximate median age of diagnosis, around 40% of all individuals will be diagnosed with a new cancer. As the global population ages, the cancer burden is rising accordingly. At a mechanistic level, notable drivers of aging also play important roles in tumorigenesis, implicating cancer as an age-related disease. These drivers include cellular senescence, chronic inflammation, DNA damage accumulation, mitochondrial dysfunction, disrupted protein homeostasis, epigenetic modifications, and altered energy metabolism, among others. Conversely, cancer can itself accelerate the aging process, both through increased psychosocial stress and side effects of treatments. For example, radiation therapy can damage DNA, chemotherapy can induce harmful transcriptomic changes, and both chemo- and immunotherapy can trigger senescence in non-malignant cells, potentially creating a vicious cycle. Many patients with cancer also experience loss of appetite, leading to malnutrition that exacerbates these pro-aging effects. Despite the tight epidemiological and molecular links between cancer and aging, older adults are underrepresented in clinical trials, and most cancer drugs are preclinically validated in young mice.
This cross-journal Collection invites original research that explicitly explores the role of aging in cancer and vice versa, from the bench to the bedside. All participating journals except Scientific Reports also welcome Reviews, Perspectives, and Comments. Nature Aging issued an earlier call for preclinical and clinical submissions at the intersection of aging and cancer, topics that are also of interest to Nature Communications. Communications Biology particularly encourages submissions concerning the mechanisms underlying the interplay between cancer and aging. Communications Medicine encourages submission of clinical, translational, epidemiological, and public health research.
Authors should refer to the aims and scope of Nature Aging, Nature Communications, Communications Biology, Communications Medicine, npj Aging, and Scientific Reports to determine the most appropriate journal for their manuscript. All participating journals welcome presubmission enquiries.
Nature Aging is edited by in-house professional editors.
Nature Communications is edited by in-house professional editors.
Communications Biology is edited by both in-house professional editors and Editorial Board Members.
Communications Medicine is edited by both in-house professional editors and Editorial Board Members.
npj Aging is managed by in-house professional editors and edited by a team of external academic editors.
Scientific Reports is managed by in-house professional editors and edited by Editorial Board Members. For this Collection, Natalie R Gassman, Miguel Godinho Ferreira, Cyrus Khandanpour and members of the Editorial Board will handle submissions to Scientific Reports. Manuel Collado will handle submissions to npj Aging.
Our editors work closely together to ensure the quality of our published papers and consistency in author experience.
Guest Editors for npj Aging
Manuel Collado, PhDCNB (CSIC), CIMUS (USC), and IDIS
Univeristy of Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Manuel Collado is a Research Scientist of CSIC and Group Leader at CIMUS (University of Santiago de Compostela, USC) in Santiago de Compostela, Spain. His research focuses on the study of cellular senescence and its involvement in physiological and pathological processes.
Guest Editors for Scientific Reports
Natalie R. Gassman, PhD
University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA
Natalie R. Gassman is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Heersink School of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, USA. Her research focuses on DNA repair modulation during environmental exposures and cancer. Dr Gassman has been an Editorial Board Member for Scientific Reports since 2023.
Miguel Godinho Ferreira, PhD
Institute for Research on Cancer and Aging of Nice, France
Miguel Godinho Ferreira is a Director de Recherche with the CNRS and Team Leader at the Institute for Research on Cancer and Aging of Nice, France. His base hypothesis suggests that telomere dysfunction signals a cascade of events that triggers organism aging and age-associated diseases, namely, cancer. Dr Godinho Ferreira has been an Editorial Board Member for Scientific Reports since 2011.
Cyrus Khandanpour, PhD, MD
University of Lübeck, Germany
Cyrus Khandanpour is a Professor at University of Lübeck for Translational Cancer Research and Co-director of the University Cancer Center Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. His research and clinical work focuses on translational research and precision oncology with a focus on early Phase I trials. Professor Khandanpour has been an Editorial Board Member for Scientific Reports since 2019.
