The rising ages of global populations are likely to make cancer, a disease which is primarily seen in the elderly, an increasingly significant problem for international health care. However improvement in the standards of cancer prevention and treating therapies can play a major part to reduce or even prevent this rise in cancer levels. Dr James Bellini explains how advances such as nano-technology and innovative new communication techniques could play a part in future health care, outlines the importance of preventative measures to reduce the economic burden of such expensive therapies and stresses the importance of tight knit communities to care for the needs of aging populations.