Biological aging and the hidden architecture of early-onset cancer risk.

Larger biological age gaps are linked to increased risk of early-onset lung, colorectal, and uterine cancers across different birth cohorts.

• Why it matters: Understanding biological aging helps identify individuals at higher risk for early-onset cancers, addressing a critical gap in early detection and prevention strategies.
• What they did: Tian et al. analyzed data from multiple birth cohorts, using aging clocks to measure biological age gaps and their association with specific cancers.
• The result: The study suggests biological age as a comprehensive marker of physiological dysregulation, paving the way for combining aging clocks with mutational signatures to improve cancer risk assessment.