Cancer Screening and Early Detection in Older People: Considerations for Nursing Practice.

OBJECTIVE: To synthesize relevant issues in cancer screening for older people for nursing practice.

DATA SOURCES: Published scientific literature, clinical literature, and published cancer screening guidelines from the United States and Canada.

CONCLUSION: Nurses are caring for increasing numbers of older patients and, with this demographic shift, face increasing demands to address cancer screening and detection in both primary and specialty practice.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE: Ageism, self-stereotyping, cancer fear and fatalism, and cancer survivorship experiences influence cancer screening and generate the need for improved awareness of these issues to advance nursing practice.