多项研究观察到年轻患者早发癌症病例显著增加。德国癌症研究中心报告20-39岁患者胃肠道癌症病例急剧增加[1]，美国研究发现类似趋势，患病比例甚至更高[1]。其中，1990-1999年出生的人群比1960年代出生者患早发结直肠癌风险高至少四倍[1]。
华盛顿大学医学院研究团队首次建立了生物年龄与实际年龄差距扩大与早发癌症风险之间的联系[1]。该研究分析了来自英国生物银行的超过15万个体的数据，以及超过1万美国个体的数据[1]。研究发现，1965-1974年出生人群的生物年龄与实际年龄差距明显大于1950-1954年出生人群[1]，表明较年轻的世代出现了更快的衰老速度。
研究表明生物年龄受多方面因素影响：约50%可以通过生活方式改变，另外50%受遗传因素决定[1]。年轻一代更早更长时间暴露于肥胖、久坐不动和屏幕接触导致的睡眠质量下降等因素[1]，这些可能是导致其生物年龄加速的重要原因。
A new study has established a direct connection between accelerated biological aging and the surge in early-onset cancer cases among young adults [1]. Researchers from Washington University School of Medicine found that younger generations are experiencing a widening gap between their biological age and chronological age, a phenomenon that correlates with elevated cancer risk [1].
The research documented a troubling trend across multiple populations. Germany's cancer research center reported a sharp increase in gastrointestinal cancer cases among people aged 20 to 39 [1], with similar patterns observed in the United States at even higher rates [1]. Most notably, individuals born between 1990 and 1999 face at least four times the risk of early-onset colorectal cancer compared to those born in the 1960s [1].
To reach their conclusions, researchers analyzed data from over 150,000 individuals in the UK Biobank and more than 10,000 Americans [1]. The analysis revealed that people born between 1965 and 1974 showed significantly greater biological-chronological age discrepancies than those born between 1950 and 1954 [1]. The study identified lifestyle factors as a major contributor, noting that approximately 50 percent of biological age can be influenced through lifestyle choices, while the remaining 50 percent is determined by genetics [1]. Younger people have experienced earlier and prolonged exposure to obesity, sedentary behavior, and screen time that disrupts sleep quality, factors that appear to accelerate biological aging [1].