♪ solid ground oh looking for ooh ♪ [ cheering and applause ] this is "nightline." >> juju: tonight, the younger faces of cancer. the shocking rise in the rates of diagnoses. >> i'm 23. this is not supposed to happen to me. >> celebrities like olivia munn and princess kate making headlines with their stories. young people finding support through social media, cancer

talk allows people to find a community. >> juju: combatting isolation by sharing their story. >> a cancer is a older person who is frail. >> juju: can researchers find the reason behind the steady increase? plus, the beach boys are back and still having fun, fun, fun. >> we're so grateful and so thankful, because what we started out doing so many years ago is still loved by people. >> juju: a sneak peek inside the legendary band's conversations backstage and the challenges along the way. >> if you focus on the negative things, you're going to miss the big picture about what our music has been and what our music still is. >> juju: the private struggle of one of their most beloved members. >> we rented a room. they closed the door. and everybody left, and we just hung out and talked. >> juju: and our special access. "nightline's" "beach boys: backstage pass." and simone biles breaking her own record. could paris be in her future?

"nightline" will be right back. (smelling) ew. gotta get rid of this. ♪tell me why♪ because it stinks. ♪have you tried downy rinse and refresh♪ it helps remove odors 3x better than detergent alone. it worked guys! ♪yeahhhh♪ downy rinse and refresh. did you know that if you shave, 1/3rd of what you remove is skin? (♪) new dove helps repair it. so, if you shave it? (♪) dove it new dove replenish your skin after every shave. a slow network is no network for business. that's why more choose comcast business. and now, we're introducing ultimate speed for business —our fastest plans yet. we're up to 12 times faster than verizon, at&t, and t-mobile.

and existing customers could even get up to triple the speeds... at no additional cost. it's ultimate speed for ultimate business. don't miss out on our fastest speed plans yet! switch to comcast business and get started for $49.99 a month. plus, ask how to get up to an $800 prepaid card. call today! thanks for joining us. tonight, what would you do if you were diagnosed with an aggressive cancer? who would you talk to? what would move to the top of your bucket list? and what if all this was happening while your friends

were graduating from college and just beginning their lives? well, you're to be meet some young people creating community and navigating these tough questions with every precious day. here is answer's medical correspondent dr. darian sutton, making his "nightline" debut. >> it's more like a relaxing vacation versus a touristy one. >> reporter: natasha allen is packing for the trip of a lifetime. traveling to egypt is just one stop on her bucket list. at 27 years old, she's got big plans. >> i visited egypt, europe, north america, antarctica is probably going to have to happen last. >> reporter: but there is an urgency to natasha's bucket list. >> go scuba diving. go skydiving, which is funny, because i'm scared of heights. >> reporter: she was diagnosed with a serious and rare form of cancer four years ago. >> i feel some sense of control, just like knowing that i'm able to check things off.

>> reporter: natasha is part of a growing and disturbing uptick of younger people, people under 50 diagnosed with cancer, like kate middleton, chadwick boseman, and actress olivia munn. >> cancer, that's the word you don't want to hear. >> reporter: but maybe most concerning to many is the rise in cancer in younger adults, under the age of 40. more than 84,000 new cases are estimated to be diagnosed in people between the ages of 15 and 39 this year alone. rates of new cancers in this age group increasing nearly a whole percentage point each year on average between 2014 and 2018. why do you think we're seeing a rising rate in the diagnosis of cancer, and more specifically in young people? >> particularly in younger patients, what we're seeing are a lot of stage 3, stage 4, so advanced cancers. and that's a little bit more sobering, because what that tells us is something is changing. something is changing globally or environmentally that could be affecting large groups of patients. >> i think the image of a cancer

patient is an old -- an older person who is frail. when you hear cancer, you think death right away. even if you don't want to. and i just kept on thinking i am 23, i'm 23. this is not supposed to happen to me. >> i have stage 1 pancreatic cancer, which is a rare diagnosis. >> reporter: experiencing cancer as a young person can be alienating for many. some gen z are turning to social media to share their stories on tiktok or cancer tok. >> you're joking. >> i predicted my cancer. >> reporter: natasha also joined cancer talk shortly after her initial diagnosis in 2020. let's go and rewind the tape when you first noticed symptoms. help me to understand what that was like. >> in the fall of 2019, i started having knee issues. >> as you can see, it's quite large, and my other knee looks normal. >> it started affecting my walking. i started limping, and limping

is not so cute when you are 22 years old and just fresh out of college. >> reporter: she searched for answers for months, and ultimately was diagnosed with stage 3 synovial sarcoma. >> i sat on the table, and my doctor came in, did not even look at me, and he is it's a tumor. had no emotion. and then i asked him, what kind of tumor? and he said synovial sarcoma. google it. so i took out my phone and googled it. and the first thing it says is rare and aggressive. when i saw that, i started crying. that day was like the darkest day of my life. >> reporter: the national cancer institute describes synovial sarcoma as a cancer that tends to be found near large joints, such as the knees. it's so rare, that only one or two people in a million are diagnosed with this type of cancer each year in the united states. >> these cancers tend to arise in soft tissues, mostly muscles. and so patients will often is a say that they noticed a lump over the course of weeks to

months that's been growing, maybe even years. >> reporter: dr. simon is a oncologist who specializes in treating tumors. when people are watching this young person, they're saying i can't until i'm in my 40s for most of these things. >> what we know about the younger people who are developing cancers is that we don't know what's making them high risk. and we don't have a way to identify them ahead of time. so my advice for anybody who is concerned is that if you have something that's going on in your health that you feel is not addressed, make sure that you get to the bottom of it. >> reporter: after undergoing chemotherapy and radiation, natasha went into remission the following spring. feeling optimistic, she pursued one of her first life-long dreams, moving from los angeles to new york. but just one month after landing in the big apple, and less than six months after her last treatment ended, she received devastating news. the cancer was back, and it had spread. >> there were spots on my lungs. i did a biopsy november 2021, confirmed synovial sarcoma,

stage 4. i kind of like expected my cancer to come back, but i was like expecting to have like two to five good years before it came back. got less than a year. and i think i kind of just started taking stock of my life. so right now i am just fighting it. doing all i can, but then also enjoying my life as being a 27-year-old in new york. >> reporter: that life includes a 9:00 to 5:00 job in finance, spending time with her mom sabina, who is a producer at abc news. >> chemo kits. >> reporter: and keeping up with her cancer talk account, which has exploded in popularity. >> oh, someone just started to me now saying i wanted to tell you that your story is so inspiring, and i'm so thankful i came across your page. >> reporter: you talked about followers. you've got more than 168,000 followers, more than 22 million likes. what does that make you feel like? >> it makes me happy, but not for, you know, the pursuit of fame, but more so that more people are seeing the awareness

i'm bringing to the disease. >> reporter: i watched a lot of your videos, and you managed to make very difficult times into sometimes extremely funny moments. where does that come from? >> if you think about it, you either cry or you laugh. and i'd rather be laughing than crying. >> reporter: that online community, a lifeline for so many, like 19-year-old isabella strahan, my colleague michael strahan's daughter, who in partnership with the preston robert tish brain center at duke has documented her blastoma, a type of brain cancer. >> every day is another day record and lydia, diagnosed with hodgkin's lymphoma when she was in college. >> one of the things nobody november one talks about is how everything tastes horrible rowe. >> reporter: she is now cancer-free. >> i'm really grateful that people posted their experiences. that's why i started posting mine. >> reporter: some medical experts urge caution in using social media as a diagnostic tool. >> it may not be always accurate

for every single patient. >> reporter: oncologist dr. laura chambers has studied online content surrounding cancer. looking at the validity of claims made on tiktok video specifically about gynecological cancer. >> there is a lot of things not necessarily recommended so maybe alternative therapies, herbal remedies, things like that which may not have a lot of evidence. >> reporter: but she says there is no denying the connection patients feel from these posts. >> i think it is an amazing resource because cancer talk really allows people to find a community, be able to share their experiences, which can be really helpful. ♪ >> reporter: when natasha is not online -- >> hey, guys! >> reporter: her trivia night with friends is one of her favorite weekly traditions. >> the only reason i know about her is -- >> i guess the essence of normalcy and being able to hang out with friends and not think about cancer, i guess, and just being a normal 20-year-old in new york city. >> reporter: you talked about

mortality. in sharing your diagnosis, how did you explain to your audience what the outcome of a diagnosis like this was? >> so 15% of people with my diagnosis live another five years. i'm trying to be one of those 15%. i'm an overachiever. i got the straight a's. i went to an ivy league. if anyone can beat this, it's going to be me. and i kind of have to tell myself that too. i will be one of those 15%. >> juju: our thanks to dr. sutton. when we return, the beach boys are back with plenty of good vibrations. ♪ she's giving me vibrations, good, good vibrations ♪ type 2 diabetes? discover the ozempic® tri-zone. ♪ ♪ i got the power of 3. i lowered my a1c, cv risk, and lost some weight. in studies, the majority of people reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. i'm under 7. ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as stroke, heart attack, or death

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come on. what can i do to help you? dad: come on buddy. headphones. what! dad: hey! dad: ok all right. what do you wanna do? i said i don't wanna talk about it! dad: trey! what are you doin'? ♪ (ominous music) ♪ ♪ (ominous music) ♪ it's ok.

♪ welcome back. summer means rock 'n roll tours and no band has ever conjured up summer vibes quite like the beach boys. here is abc's rhiannon ali. ♪ >> reporter: the legendary beach boys -- ♪ -- are back. you're living your dream. >> i'm living my dream. 59 years. >> reporter: on the road once again touring with two of the band's biggest icons. you still feel like that same young man? >> no. no, six decades later, i don't think so. ♪ let's go surfing now, everybody's learning how, come on safari with me ♪ >> reporter: rocking out since the '60s, and still giving fans some fun, fun, fun. >> i grew up listening to the beach boys. we loved them a lot. >> it's good to see them. ♪ everybody's gone surfing,

surfing usa ♪ >> reporter: and now fans can see the band like never before. >> here interest beach boys! ♪ i get around ♪ >> reporter: a new disney+ documentary, "the beach boys," kicking off summer with unprecedented access. >> the fact that it was a family, that's where the success came from. >> reporter: a two-hour symphony through the band's highs and lows as they bring the beach to generations of audiences. >> on tour, '62, '63, they'd be in kansas, and people would have surfboards on top of their car and no ocean. >> reporter: no ocean. what were they doing with the surfboards? trying to be cool like the beach boys. what do those kind of memories mean to you when someone says that? >> that's a mind blower, and i think it's incredibly fantastic that your efforts musically are appreciated by people not only in our home country, but all around the world. >> reporter: from teen surf idols to one of the most influential music groups of all time. >> we're known as america's

band. i call it -- our music a sonic oasis, a place where you can go and really get away. it transcends ethnic groups, political divisions, and it's fantastic because the harmonies bring everybody together. >> reporter: their songs teleporting listeners to sunnier days with timeless hits like "wouldn't it be nice". ♪ wouldn't bit nice if we were older ♪ >> reporter: and of course those good vibrations. ♪ i'm picking up good vibrations ♪ >> it's thrilling. and we're so grateful and so thankful, because what we started out doing so many years ago is still loved by people. even people who weren't born yet, whose parents hadn't met yet. >> reporter: with over 100 million records sold worldwide, and more than 80 of their hits topping charts around the globe, they've earned a recording academy award from the rock & roll hall of fame. >> they are for me in what

america is, a very, very wonderful place to be, the beach boys. >> reporter: from elton john to john stamm moos, kn jesse on the hit sitcom "full house". >> man, this is great, hanging out with the beach boys, sitting, eating pizza. you guys want to see my room? >> reporter: the star also a beach boys superfan, guest performing with them on stage since 1985, airing one of his performances during an episode of "full house." ♪ peggy sue, drive marilou, but i wish she wouldn't, barbara anne ♪ >> would ride his bicycle past my parents' home and look in the windows and see the gold albums. he was fascinated by that. >> reporter: now he is a guest drummer for the group, and joining them on part of their tour this summer. >> he plays great drums and guitar, and he is as hooked on us, and we're hooked on him. >> reporter: before the masses got hooked on the beach boys, they were just a group of kids

from hawthorne, california. >> three brothers, brian, dennis and carl, a cousin, mike love, and our good friend, that's family to me. how did you guys get started singing? >> well, that was a family hobby, to come together and sing. it was always about music. and the family, even if there were differences in the family, they all went out the window when we harmonized. it's kind of a life lesson. >> reporter: six generations of seemingly seamless recording and touring, but not without some troubles along the way. from the very beginning, the group has changed member composition. you had the touring group and the studio group. has that been a challenge all these years? >> well, it's been a challenge in that my cousin dennis passed away in 1983. and when mortality hits your family, it's tough. but he was a guy who really fantastic in so many ways, but the alcohol and the drugs got to

him. >> reporter: was it hard to see all those memories of him in the documentary? >> yeah, it was. when people ask me how you felt seeing the documentary, well, a lot of nostalgia, a lot of great things musically, but also sadness. >> reporter: lead guitarist carl wilson also passing away in 1998 from lung cancer. all of the band's surviving members together again in the documentary. and back where it all started, the site of their very first album cover. how did that feel, being all together again at the beach? >> very sweet. it was really great. >> it was comfortable. and hi, how are you doing? what? all right. brian is back! >> reporter: what is your relationship now like with brian? has it been hard to watch him going through what he is going through? >> yeah, of course. yeah. you don't like seeing a friend or a loved one or a relative go through hard times.

>> reporter: brian still connecting with his band mates, despite a recent dementia diagnosis. >> he is still transmitting love to us. it was so great. we were in a room. they closed the door, and everybody left, and we just hung out and talked. it was great. he's still there. >> there has definitely been challenges along the way, but at the basis, it's all about love. it's all about harmony. if you focus on the negative things, you're going miss the big picture about what our music has been. and it's more necessary than ever to have positivity in the airwaves. ♪ surfing usa ♪ >> reporter: a band of brothers keeping their california dream alive with a new tour, aptly titled "endless summer gold." will you keep touring until you just can't do it anymore? >> i think that as long as people want to hear us and as long as we have the health and ability to sing, as long as my

teeth don't fall in my lap, i'm going to keep going, you know what i mean? [ applause ] >> juju: our thanks to rhiannon. you can watch the new documentary "the beach boys" now streaming on disney+. when we return, simone biles sets a new record, bringing herself one step closer to the paris games. ♪ are you tired of your hair breaking after waiting years for it to grow? meet new pantene pro-v miracles. with our highest concentration of pro-vitamins yet, infused with ingredients like biotin & collagen. strengthens hair bonds and repairs as well as the leading luxury brand without the $60 price tag. for stronger, healthier hair. ♪ if you know, you know it's pantene. ♪ (vo) beneful knows a full life doesn't just happen...it's a choice if you know, you know it's pantene. to take a swing...

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a slow network is no network for business. that's why more choose comcast business. and now, we're introducing ultimate speed for business —our fastest plans yet. we're up to 12 times faster than verizon, at&t, and t-mobile.

and existing customers could even get up to triple the speeds... at no additional cost. it's ultimate speed for ultimate business. don't miss out on our fastest speed plans yet! switch to comcast business and get started for $49.99 a month. plus, ask how to get up to an $800 prepaid card. call today! type 2 diabetes? discover the ozempic® tri-zone. ♪ ♪ i got the power of 3. i lowered my a1c, cv risk, and lost some weight. in studies, the majority of people reached an a1c under 7 and maintained it. i'm under 7. ozempic® lowers the risk of major cardiovascular events such as stroke, heart attack, or death in adults also with known heart disease. i'm lowering my risk. adults lost up to 14 pounds. i lost some weight. ozempic® isn't for people with type 1 diabetes. don't share needles or pens, or reuse needles. don't take ozempic® if you or your family ever had medullary thyroid cancer, or have multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome type 2, or if allergic to it. stop ozempic® and get medical help right away if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or an allergic reaction.

serious side effects may include pancreatitis. gallbladder problems may occur. tell your provider about vision problems or changes. taking ozempic® with a sulfonylurea or insulin may increase low blood sugar risk. side effects like nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may lead to dehydration, which may worsen kidney problems. living with type 2 diabetes? ask about the power of 3 with ozempic®.

and finally tonight, simone biles setting the stage for a return to the olympic games. simone biles winning her ninth all around title at the xfinity u.s. championship yesterday, the most decorated gymnast in history swept every event, including the vault in which she pulled off a yurchenko double pike, landed on her back, and still scored a 15 because of the move's difficulty. biles will head to the olympic trials in minneapolis at the end of the month. and if all goes well, the paris games this summer. brava! that's "nightline." you can watch all of our full episodes on hulu.