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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Science
Ian Sample Science editor

Research may reveal why people can suddenly become frail in their 70s

Baby's hand touching older woman's hand
The research team studied blood cells across the age range from newborns to people in their 70s and 80s. Photograph: Radius Images/Alamy

A groundbreaking theory of ageing that explains why people can suddenly become frail after reaching their 70s has raised the prospect of new therapies for the decline and diseases of old age.

Researchers in Cambridge discovered a process that drives a “catastrophic” change in the composition of blood in older age, increasing the risk of blood cancers and anaemia, and impairing the effectiveness of white blood cells to fight infection.

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