- Previous research has shown that several modifiable risk factors can increase a person’s risk of cancer.
- A new study from the American Cancer Society found that four in 10 cancer diagnoses and nearly half of cancer deaths among adults over age 30 in the United States could be attributed to modifiable risk factors.
- Scientists report that smoking is the leading risk factor responsible for nearly 20% of all cancer cases and 30% of all cancer deaths.
Previous research has shown that there are several modifiable risk factors, such as
Now, a new study from the American Cancer Society — published in
For this study, the researchers used 2019 information from various nationally representative data on cancer incidence and mortality, as well as the prevalence of risk factors.
Risk factors examined by scientists included:
“Information on the proportion and number of cancer cases and deaths attributable to potentially modifiable risk factors is useful for establishing more relevant priorities for cancer prevention and control,”
“In addition, it can increase public awareness of cancer risk factors, which could lead to reduced exposure to these risk factors, such as quitting smoking, maintaining a healthy body weight and diet, HPV vaccination, etc.,” he noted.
After analysis, the researchers found that smoking was responsible for the largest percentage of cancer cases, almost 20%.
Smoking has been linked to 56% of all potentially preventable cancers in men and about 40% of preventable cancer cases in women.
Additionally, scientists have linked smoking to 30% of cancer deaths.
“We already knew that smoking was the most common modifiable risk factor for cancer in the United States,” Islami said. “We have seen substantial progress in reducing smoking rates over the past few decades, but we must continue and intensify our efforts to reduce smoking even further.”
“It is also worth noting that not all states and socioeconomic groups have benefited from these advances in the same way,” he added. “Our findings underscore the importance of implementing comprehensive tobacco control policies in every state, including broad and equitable implementation of interventions to promote smoking cessation across all socioeconomic groups.”
After smoking, the four other major modifiable risk factors for all cancer cases were:
- excess body weight
- alcohol consumption
- Exposure to UV rays
- physical inactivity.
“A large number of cancer cases and deaths in the United States are attributable to these potentially modifiable risk factors, indicating that the burden of cancer can be substantially reduced through broad and equitable implementation of prevention initiatives,” Islami said. “Several measures have been recommended to reduce exposure to these risk factors.”
He detailed:
“For UV rays, these measures include limiting excessive sun exposure (e.g., avoiding direct sunlight between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., seeking shade) (as well as) wearing protective clothing, hats, and sunglasses, and regularly applying broad-spectrum sunscreens that block both UVA and UVB rays. Some of these measures, such as providing adequate shade in parks, children’s playgrounds, and other locations, will require multi-pronged interventions at the community level.”
“We also need more implementation research to apply known interventions more broadly, particularly for overweight, unhealthy diet, alcohol use and physical inactivity, and to identify tailored and mutually reinforcing interventions that are more likely to mitigate these risk factors, particularly in historically marginalized populations, who are typically disproportionately affected by these factors,” Islami added.
Islami and his team also studied the impact of modifiable risk factors on 30 specific cancers.
During the study, researchers found that more than 50% of cases of 19 of the 30 types of cancer evaluated could be attributed to potentially modifiable risk factors.
Some of the most serious cancers caused by these potentially reversible risk factors included 100% of cervical cancers and Kaposi’s sarcoma, 94.2% of anal cancers, 92.2% of more than 80% of cutaneous melanomas, and 88.2% of lung cancers.
“For some risk factors, exposure is generally more frequent or more intense in certain organs, for example tobacco smoke in the lungs, and this may play a role in a stronger association between smoking and lung cancer,” Islami explained.
He also highlighted the role that certain viruses, such as HPV – which can be prevented through vaccination and cervical cancer screening – play in cancer risk.
“Certain risk factors may be associated with a higher risk in certain cells or tissues. For example, human papillomavirus is more likely to cause cancer in squamous cells, although it can also cause cancer in glandular cells. The biological reasons for these differences need further investigation,” he added.
After reviewing the study, Dr. Nilesh Vora, a board-certified hematologist, medical oncologist and medical director of MemorialCare Todd Cancer Institute at Long Beach Medical Center in Long Beach, California, who was not involved in the research, said: MNT that the results were not surprising.
“We talk all the time about modifiable risk factors. We see patients all the time who are newly diagnosed with cancer, and often we find the same types of risk factors that were found in this study,” Vora said.
“This type of information is a great way to educate our primary care providers who are at the forefront of prevention. So by integrating all possible interventions to modify these risk factors, we can reduce the risk of a patient developing cancer,” he added.
“I would love to see this type of data shared with our community — not just our providers, but also our patients, either directly or through the providers who see them regularly, to really teach people how these risk factors can lead to cancer,” Vora said.
News Source : www.medicalnewstoday.com
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