Florida Child Injury Law Blog

A health news report published interesting information on the subject of cancer being overlooked among teens.  In a unique study, British researchers are concluding that teen and young adult cancer patients often feel frustrated that their symptoms are not taken seriously. 

 Interviews with 24 cancer patients between the ages of 16 and 24 revealed one common thread: a perception existed among these patients that they were not being listened to and that cancer was being ruled out as the result of their age.     

 Dr. Gregory H. Reaman, a pediatric cancer specialist at George Washington School of Medicine in Washington, D.C., agreed with the study noting the situation is similar in the U.S. “And it’s true for children, not just teens and young adults,” he says.

“The symptoms are pretty nonspecific — lethargy, pain, fever,  for example. So they are generally attributed to a benign condition, other than cancer, given the rarity of cancer in this age group,” Reaman says. Reaman also stressed however, that if symptoms persist they should be checked out.

Young people aged 15 to 24 account for less than 2% of all cancer cases worldwide.