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Concrete cancer is a serious problem that occurs within concrete and it is caused by the steel reinforcing inside the concrete rusting. As the steel reinforcing rusts, it expands, causing the concrete around the steel to be displaced. As the concrete becomes more displaced, more water gets into the steel, causing more rusting and the problem gets worse. The expansion of the steel causes the concrete to delaminate, and results in spalling. Spalling is where the concrete initially cracks, and then starts to break away. While spalled concrete looks terrible, it can also be dangerous as pieces of concrete fall off and possibly hit people underneath. Spalling also weakens the strength of the concrete.
Concrete cancer can start in a number of ways including using poorly treated reinforcing steel when the concrete is poured, having the ends of the reinforcing too close to the surface so that water can get to it, using incompatible metals (this causes a reaction), and having fractures in the concrete.