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Cancers
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New Developments in Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology
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New Developments in Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology

A special issue of Cancers (ISSN 2072-6694). This special issue belongs to the section "Clinical Research of Cancer".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (24 October 2025) | Viewed by 3437

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Olga Husson

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Medical Oncology, Netherlands Cancer Institute, 1066 CX Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Interests: adolescent and young adult oncology; epidemiology; health-related quality of life; late effects; survivorship; rare cancers
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Winette T.A. van der Graaf

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Medical Oncology, Netherlands Cancer Institute, 1066 CX Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Interests: adolescent and young adult oncology; epidemiology; health-related quality of life; late effects; survivorship; rare cancers
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Adolescent and young adult (AYA) oncology focuses on the unique medical and psychosocial needs of patients aged 15–39 who are diagnosed with cancer. This population faces distinct challenges, including delayed diagnoses, limited access to age-appropriate care, and interruptions in education or career development. AYA patients often experience higher rates of long-term treatment-related side effects and infertility concerns compared with other age groups. They also encounter barriers to clinical trial enrollment, impacting advancements in targeted therapies for this demographic. Emotional and social challenges, such as isolation and altered peer relationships, are prevalent and require integrated psychosocial support. Survivorship care is critical for AYAs due to their increased risk of late effects, secondary malignancies, and mental health issues. Fertility preservation options must be discussed prior to treatment, ensuring informed decision-making and future family planning opportunities. Multidisciplinary care teams, including oncologists, mental health professionals, and fertility specialists, are essential to address the complex needs of AYA patients. Advocacy efforts and specialized programs aim to improve AYA cancer outcomes by promoting research, awareness, and policy changes. Future research must continue to explore innovative therapies, survivorship strategies, and personalized care approaches for this vulnerable and often underserved group. This Special Issue will focus on all new developments in AYA oncology.

Yours faithfully,

Dr. Olga Husson
Prof. Dr. Winette T.A. van der Graaf
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Cancers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • adolescent and young adult oncology
  • epidemiology
  • health-related quality of life
  • late effects
  • survivorship
  • clinical care

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

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18 pages, 526 KB  
Article
Does Joint Care Impact Teenage and Young Adult’s Patient-Reported Outcomes After a Cancer Diagnosis? Results from BRIGHTLIGHT_2021
by Lorna A. Fern, Elysse Bautista-Gonzalez, Julie A. Barber, Jamie Cargill, Richard G. Feltbower, Laura Haddad, Maria Lawal, Martin G. McCabe, Safia Samih, Louise Soanes, Dan P. Stark, Cecilia Vindrola-Padros and Rachel M. Taylor
Cancers 2025, 17(23), 3868; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers17233868 (registering DOI) - 2 Dec 2025
Abstract
Background: Healthcare policy in the United Kingdom recognizes that teenagers and young adults (TYA:16–24 years at diagnosis) require specialist care. In England, Principal Treatment Centers (PTCs) exist, delivering enhanced care exclusively within the PTC or as ‘joint care’ with designated hospitals (DHs). We [...] Read more.
Background: Healthcare policy in the United Kingdom recognizes that teenagers and young adults (TYA:16–24 years at diagnosis) require specialist care. In England, Principal Treatment Centers (PTCs) exist, delivering enhanced care exclusively within the PTC or as ‘joint care’ with designated hospitals (DHs). We examined whether joint care impacted patient-reported outcomes when compared to care at one site. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in England, Scotland, and Wales. This included validated measures of quality of life (QoL), anxiety and depression, health status, social support, and illness perception. Comparisons were made based on young people’s exposure to specialist care within 6 months of diagnosis, defined as care in a TYA PTC: all-TYA-care (all care in a TYA unit), no-TYA-care (no care in a TYA unit, care delivered in a children’s/adult unit only), and joint-care (care in a TYA-PTC and in a children’s/adult unit). Results: Overall, 260/1009 (25.8%) participants responded (England n = 241; Scotland/Wales n = 19). Due to different healthcare policies, statistical analysis was applied to England only. Mean QoL scores were <69.7, the threshold indicating impaired QoL (mean 58.65, standard deviation 20.13). After adjustment for confounding factors, no clinically significant differences in mean QoL between categories existed. The adjusted mean difference for all-TYA-care (n = 66) versus no-TYA-care (n = 89) was −2.28 units (95% confidence interval (CI: −8.85 to 4.29) and for joint-care versus no-TYA-care (n = 85), −4.35 units (CI: −10.34 to 1.63). Similarly, no notable differences in social support, anxiety, depression, or illness perception between categories existed. Patients receiving all-TYA-care had a lower average health status compared with no-TYA-care (difference in means −0.09 (CI:−0.18 to −0.01). Conclusions: No evidence that patient-reported outcomes differ by categories of care existed. This may suggest the evolution of TYA cancer services has led to similar outcomes regardless of care category. However, given the small sample size it is not possible to draw firm conclusions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Developments in Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology)
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Review

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19 pages, 4001 KB  
Review
Core Patient-Centered Outcomes for Adolescents and Young Adults with Cancer: A Comprehensive Review of the Literature from the STRONG-AYA Project
by Silvie H. M. Janssen, Winette T. A. van der Graaf, Anna Hurley-Wallace, Carla Vlooswijk, Catarina S. Padilla, Charlotte Cairns, Connor J. Tyler, Emily I. Holthuis, Gudrun E. Rohde, Katherine J. Hunt, Kirsty Way, Konstantinos Angoumis, Lina H. Lankhorst, Maarten F. M. Engel, Maria-Sophie Rothmund, Milou J. P. Reuvers, Nicole Collaço, Richard Wagland, Samantha C. Sodergren, Simone Hanebaum, Thom Legendal, Thomas J. Cartledge, Tom I. Bootsma, Yushi Bai, Anne-Sophie Darlington and Olga Hussonadd Show full author list remove Hide full author list
Cancers 2025, 17(3), 454; https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers17030454 - 28 Jan 2025
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2961
Abstract
Background: In adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer, the importance of patient-centered research outcomes is increasingly acknowledged and there is a need for consensus on the most relevant outcomes. This review provides a comprehensive overview of outcomes relevant to AYAs with cancer [...] Read more.
Background: In adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer, the importance of patient-centered research outcomes is increasingly acknowledged and there is a need for consensus on the most relevant outcomes. This review provides a comprehensive overview of outcomes relevant to AYAs with cancer in order to develop an AYA-specific core outcome set (COS) as part of the European project STRONG-AYA. Methods: A literature search was conducted to identify relevant articles in five databases. Each article was reviewed by two independent researchers, using Rayyan (an online tool) to screen articles by their title/abstract and then by their full text. Subsequently, the data were extracted using a predefined, tailored extraction framework. Results: In total, 17,301 articles were screened, of which 1631 were included in the analyses. Registry studies (52.9%) were the most used study type. Well-represented continents were North America (50.3%) and Europe (27.8%). Of the five core areas, functioning (47.0%) and epidemiology (44.9%) were covered most often, followed by physiological/clinical (42.4%), resource use (6.1%), and adverse events (4.5%). The outcome domains that were represented the most include mortality/survival (43.1%), delivery of care (23.4%), outcomes relating to neoplasms (22.7%), and emotional functioning/well-being (19.2%). Conclusions: This literature review provides a foundation for the development of an AYA-specific COS for improving the relevance and efficiency of measuring outcomes, the pooling of (international) research data, and the value of care for current and future AYAs with cancer. Finalization and refinement of the COS should be a priority for future research. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue New Developments in Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology)
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