title: Spectrum of cancer in adolescents and young adult: An epidemiological and clinicopathological evaluation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Changing scenario of cancer in adolescents and young adult (AYA) age group becomes an emerging and alarming problem. The age span that falls under the AYA umbrella, i.e., 15-29 years, is broad and having unique characteristic as compared to older and pediatric cohort. Only a few data are available in English literature about this age group where the spectrum of cancer varies accordingly as the function of age.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence and pattern of tumor in adolescents and young age group.
  
  
  METHODS
  A retrospective observational study was done at a tertiary care center. Medical records of patients aged 15-29 years registered from 2011 to 2015 were retrieved for analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Incidence rate of malignancy in AYA age is 5.71% in this observational study. Male:female ratio was 1.81:1. Most common cancer in this age group was head and neck cancer > central nervous system > gastrointestinal tract in the entire cohort.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The malignancy spectrum, their subtypes, and demographic distribution in the AYA cohort have diversity among different cancer centers within India as well as in different countries across the world.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiotherapy, VMMC and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sharma
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiotherapy, VMMC and Safdarjung Hospital, New Delhi, India.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Singh
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult