• Posted April 14, 2026

Young Cancer Survivors Face Doubled Risk Of Subsequent New Cancer

Teenagers and young adults who survive a bout with cancer shouldn’t let their guard down in the years that follow, a new study warns.

They have double the risk of developing a new cancer — even those who’ve survived longer than five years, researchers reported April 13 in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.

“There is a growing population of young cancer survivors that will be adversely affected by their cancer diagnosis and its treatment even decades later,” concluded the research team led by Miranda Fidler-Benaoudia, a cancer epidemiologist at the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada.

For the new study, researchers tracked data on all 15- to 39-year-olds in Alberta who were diagnosed with a first cancer between 1983 and 2017.

Of the nearly 24,500 people, about 6% developed at least one subsequent cancer.

Lymphoma and breast cancer patients were most likely to develop another cancer, researchers found.

Breast, colon and lung cancers were the most common new cancers, accounting for 43%, the study found.

“Although people with nearly all types of adolescent and young adult cancer investigated were at an increased risk of developing a subsequent (new cancer), survivors of Hodgkin lymphoma and breast cancer were identified as particularly vulnerable populations, with nearly one-third of subsequent (new cancers) occurring after five-year survival diagnosed in these survivor groups,” researchers wrote.

At 30 years after their original diagnosis, 1 in 6 survivors of teen or young adult cancer will experience another cancer, researchers concluded.

These follow-up cancers might be driven by genetics, as well as by the effects of radiation therapy, chemotherapy and hormone therapy deployed to treat the initial cancer, researchers said.

“Our findings suggest that earlier cancer surveillance in this population may be warranted, which agrees with numerous survivorship guidelines that recommend earlier breast and colorectal cancer surveillance for at-risk cancer survivors,” the researchers wrote.

For example, these patients might benefit from genetic counseling and advice on maintaining a healthy lifestyle, researchers wrote.

“These findings underscore the need for innovative solutions to prevent, detect and treat subsequent (new cancers) among survivors of adolescent and young adult cancer,” the team concluded.

More information

The American Cancer Society has more on follow-up care after cancer treatment.

SOURCES: Canadian Medical Association, news release, April 13, 2026; Canadian Medical Association Journal, April 13, 2026