Hematology/oncology Clinics of North America · May 13, 2022

Colorectal Cancer in Younger Adults

By Dharwadkar P, Zaki TA, Murphy CC

Contrary to decreasing incidence rate of colorectal cancer (CRC) in older adults, incidence rates have nearly doubled in younger adults (age <50 years) in the United States since the early 1990s. A similar increase has been observed across the globe. Despite overall population trends in aging, about 15% of CRCs will be diagnosed in younger adults by 2030. The mechanisms and factors contributing to early-onset CRC (EOCRC) remain puzzling, especially because most young adults diagnosed with CRC have no known risk factors or predisposing conditions, such as family history of CRC or polyps or a hereditary syndrome (eg, Lynch syndrome, polyposis). In this up-to-date review, we discuss the current knowledge of EOCRC, including epidemiology, risk factors, clinical and molecular features, treatment and survival, and recognition and screening strategies.

doi.org/10.1016/j.hoc.2022.02.005 Open access, accepted manuscript PubMed 35577711 Populations