Osteoporosis – a partially recognized challenge for oncology

Abstract

Osteoporosis is a huge challenge for medicine, especially public health and geriatrics, but also oncology, because it is a chronic disease requiring long-term, sometimes lifelong care. With the ageing of the population, falls are the third most common cause of disability in the elderly and one of the main reasons for admissions to nursing homes. Although there are approximate data on the incidence of osteoporosis worldwide, there are unfortunately no data on the incidence of osteoporosis in cancerous diseases. The incidence of cancer-related osteoporosis is expected to increase as the incidence of cancer in general increases. There are specific problems that concern osteoporosis in cancer patients, including: the mechanisms of development of osteoporosis in cancer diseases, the distinction between cancerous and osteoporotic lesions, undertreatment of patients, the lack of an integrated care system for osteoporosis in cancer patients.