Up to the present, medicine has successfully concentrated on the treatment of specific diseases and the successful progress has contributed notably to reductions in mortality rates in early and middle life. This progress has, however, not materially increased the total life span. Future improvements in longevity may therefore come from methods of delaying the “aging” process, rather than from specific advances in preventative medicine. Such methods are known to be effective when applied to the animal world, and the possibility of applying them to human life opens fascinating prospects. The possibilities of, and need for research into these factors are discussed.