Cancer

Q:

Recently, on a health radio show, the host commented that ~75% of all forms of cancer are preventable.  What can you tell me about this statement?

A:

There is debate about recent cancer prevention studies.

•         2008 research suggested that 5 to 10% of all cancer cases were attributed to genetic defects and the remaining 90–95% were attributed to environment and lifestyle.

•         A more recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association Oncology suggests that maintaining a healthy lifestyle decreases cancer deaths by 67% for men and 59% for women and drops the occurrence of new cancers by 41% in women and 63% in men.

Again there is debate on the percentages, but there is no debate that better lifestyle and environment habits are important to reducing the cancer risk.

Better lifestyle and environment habits include:

•         Eliminate tobacco use (25–30% of cancer deaths are tied to tobacco use)

•         Better diets (30–35% of cancer deaths are tied to poor diets / obesity)

–        Moderate use of alcohol

–        Consume more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains

–        Limit meat consumption / consume lean cuts of meat

–        Reduce consumption of processed or packaged foods

•         Exercise 75 to 150 minutes a week

•         Improve body composition

•         Use sun screen and minimize exposure to environmental pollutants

The following websites were used in answering the question:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2515569/

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2016/05/20/study-us-cancer-deaths-mostly-preventable/84648084/