Risk of diabetes in childhood and young adult cancer survivors

What is it about?

People who survive a diagnosis of cancer during childhood or young adulthood may have a greater chance of developing diabetes later in life due to the treatments they received. This study looked at childhood and young adult cancer survivors in the United Kingdom to see how at risk they are and which treatments might contribute the most to that risk. We found that certain cancer treatments, like exposure of the whole body to radiation ( a treatment called total body irradiation) significantly increased the risk of diabetes in survivors over time. For example, 40 years after cancer treatment, 21% of survivors who were exposed to total body irradiation as children/young adults developed diabetes, compared to just 8% of those who didn’t have this treatment. Survivors who received corticosteroids (a class of chemotherapy drug) also had a higher risk of developing diabetes, with an 8% increased chance of developing diabetes 40 years after their cancer diagnosis. Additionally, those who had a bone marrow transplant, which is a procedure often used in treatment for leukaemia, were found to have a much greater risk of developing diabetes. Among these survivors, those who had an allogeneic transplant (using donor cells) faced an even higher risk (26%) compared to those who had an autologous transplant (using their own cells) with a risk of 8%.

Featured Image

Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash

Why is it important?

The study shows that cancer treatments can have long-term effects on survivors' health, and the risk of developing diabetes varies depending on the type of cancer treatment they received. These findings can help healthcare professionals create better screening and prevention strategies for those at higher risk of diabetes after cancer treatment.

Perspectives