If they are aware that the risk of cancer can be reduced thanks to certain virtuous lifestyle habits, the French do not always have the right levers in mind.
The French are optimistic: they consider themselves generally well informed regarding The causes of cancer. However, the 4e Health barometer, a survey conducted by the National Cancer Institute every five years, tends to show that certain notions, in particular on risk factors, are not yet well acquired, or even regress.
To take this “snapshot” of the state of knowledge of our compatriots, essential to guide information and awareness campaigns, underlines INCa, 5,000 people aged 18 to 85 were interviewed during the year. 2021.
Distancing
If the French are aware that the risk of cancer can be reduced thanks to certain virtuous lifestyle habits, they do not always have the right levers in mind. For example, psychological factors (stress, traumatic experiences) are often cited among tumor risk factors, although there is no proven scientific evidence of this link. Conversely, they greatly underestimate the impact of lack of physical activity, exposure to the sun without protection and obesity on the probability of one day suffering from cancer.
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However, some real risk factors are well identified. Smoking, the first avoidable risk factor for cancer and alone causes 46,000 deaths per year, is cited by more than 8 out of 10 people, up from 2015. But some nuances escape most people. Thus, 6 out of 10 people think that the number of cigarettes smoked per day is more dangerous than the duration of smoking, whereas it is the duration of exposure to the carcinogenic substances of tobacco that is the most harmful.
In addition, 1 in 2 people think that “playing sports cleans the lungs of tobacco”, which is not true. And if the majority of daily smokers are legitimately worried regarding having cancer one day (7 out of 10), they still tend to underestimate the level of their own risk. Indeed, more than 1 in 2 smokers cites dangerousness thresholds (in number of cigarettes per day or year of smoking) above their own habits.
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Despite its proven link with many cancers (breast, colon, mouth, liver, etc.), alcohol is spontaneously mentioned by only a third of those questioned, which places it in 3e position of the risk factors considered the most dangerous, when in fact it occupies the 2e place (it is the cause of 8% of avoidable cancers in France). Here once more, a distancing is observed, because the more a person consumes alcohol, the less they tend to cite it as associated with cancer. As for exposure to ultraviolet rays, responsible for melanoma, it is also a source of confusion. Another 1 in 5 people questioned wrongly believe that the UV rays given off in artificial tanning booths are less harmful than the sun’s rays. And nearly 1 in 4 people believe that “doing UV before the holidays helps prepare your skin to protect yourself from the sun”, wrongly there too.
It should not be ignored, however, that certain knowledge is progressing: this has been the case for the past ten years with the role of food, the harmful effects of charcuterie and red meat, and the benefits of fruits and vegetables which are better and better understood.
