Study finds nearly half of cancer deaths in the US could have been prevented

• The American Cancer Society has determined that a change in lifestyle can influence the reduction of the risk of suffering from this disease.

A study by the American Cancer Society found that at least 40 percent of new cancer cases among adults aged 30 or older in the United States, as well as nearly half of deaths, might be attributed to preventable risk factors.

The study, published on July 11, found that smoking is the main risk factor, accounting for 56% of the incidence. Other factors include excess body weight (7.6%), alcohol consumption (5.4%), exposure to UV radiation (4.6%) and physical inactivity (3.1%).

“These are things that people can change in their everyday lives to reduce their risk of cancer,” Dr. Arif Kamal, chief patient officer for the American Cancer Society, told CNN.

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In total, the researchers analyzed 18 modifiable risk factors across 30 types of cancer. The study found that in 2019, these lifestyle factors were linked to more than 700,000 new cancer cases and more than 262,000 deaths.

Incidence of risk factors in men and women

The study found that the proportions of cancer cases attributable to smoking, ultraviolet radiation, HCV infection and HIV infection were generally higher in men than in women. “This reflects a historically higher prevalence of these risk factors in men,” she said.

On the other hand, risk factors associated with body weight, alcohol consumption, physical inactivity and HPV infection were higher in women. The high burden of female-specific cancers (breast, endometrium and cervix) might be attributed to these variables.

Specialist Arif Kamal told the portal CNN that cancer arises because of DNA damage or because something else causes it to develop. He also mentioned that genetics or environmental factors can also create these biological conditions, but modifiable risks account for a significantly higher proportion of cancer cases and deaths than any other known factor.

“With cancer, you often feel like you have no control. People think regarding bad luck or bad genetics, but you have to have a sense of control and agency,” she added.

Some types of cancer can be prevented more than others

The study suggests that certain cancers are more preventable than others, but modifiable risk factors contributed to more than half of new cases of 19 of the 30 types of the disease evaluated.

According to the research, there were 10 types of cancer for which modifiable risk factors might be attributed in at least 80% of new cases, including more than 90% of melanoma cases related to ultraviolet radiation and almost all cases of cervical cancer related to HPV infection, which can be prevented by a vaccine.

Regarding lung cancer, this had the highest number of cases attributable to modifiable risk factors (more than 104,000 cases among men and 97,000 among women) and the vast majority were related to smoking.

The second-biggest contributor to cancer cases was excess body weight, which was linked to regarding 5% of new cases in men and nearly 11% of cases in women. The study found that being overweight was associated with more than one-third of deaths from cancers of the endometrium, gallbladder, esophagus, liver and kidney.

Experts say that as early-onset cancer rates rise in the U.S., it’s important to create healthy habits as early as possible that can make a difference later in life.

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