Why Adults Are Getting Cancer at a Younger Age

About this episode

<p>For years, cancer has been seen as a disease people mostly get when they’re older. That seems to be changing as more young people are getting cancer than ever before.</p> <p>Today, Nina Agrawal, a health reporter for The New York Times, explains what scientists are learning about the factors driving the rise and what it means for a generation of young cancer survivors.</p> <p>Guest: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/nina-agrawal" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><strong>Nina Agrawal</strong></a>, a health reporter for The New York Times.</p> <p>Background reading: </p> <ul> <li>Hundreds of New York Times readers shared their experiences with early-onset cancers. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/04/04/well/early-onset-cancer.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Here are seven of their stories</a>.</li> <li>Research is starting to offer clues about why <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/01/well/cancer-young-people.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">more than a dozen types of cancer have increased among people under 50 in the past decade</a>.</li> </ul> <p>Photo: Leah Nash for The New York Times</p> <p>For more information on today’s episode, visit <a href="http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily" rel="noopener noreferrer">nytimes.com/thedaily</a>. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. </p> <p><p>Subscribe today at <a href="http://nytimes.com/podcasts">nytimes.com/podcasts</a> or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher">https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher</a>. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.</p></p><br/> <p>Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.</p>