How can we prevent cancer

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in Russia. Millions die from heart problems, without even realizing that the development of the disease could be prevented and controlled. One had only to switch to proper nutrition, exercise and quit smoking, since we cannot influence age and genetics.

This is how people think about cancer: nothing can be done. To some extent, this is true. Some tissues are more likely to develop cancer than others. But there is a clear relationship between the frequency of cell division and the risk of developing cancer. …

In other words, the more often DNA is copied, the greater the likelihood of an error in a new division. Therefore, many people think that cancer is when unlucky, and nothing can be done about it.

But it’s not that simple. For example, lung cells rarely divide, but lung cancer is one of the most common. In the gastrointestinal tract, cells are constantly dividing, but the number of cases of cancer is comparable to the number of cases of lung cancer. Melanoma, in theory, should arise for reasons beyond our control, but its main cause is solar radiation.

Let the researchers study which tissue is susceptible to cancer. We need to focus on what to change in our lifestyle so as not to get sick.

A recent study in the journal Nature. showed that we can do a lot. The environment and external factors influence cancer. Diet affects rectal cancer. Alcohol and smoking - for esophageal cancer. Papillomavirus - for cervical cancer, hepatitis C - for liver cancer.

And one must live on a desert island so as not to know that smoking leads to lung cancer, and excess sunburn leads to skin cancer.

Genetics and other causes beyond our control are to blame for only 30% of cancers. We can prevent the remaining 70%.

What affects the risk of the disease

In a study by the journal JAMA. scientists have tried to assess how much our habits affect the appearance of cancer. They looked at four main factors that negatively affect health:

smoking;
alcohol;
excess weight;
lack of sports.

People who look after themselves and are not attached to bad habits fall into the low-risk group. They were compared with those who are not included in the group of healthy lifestyle lovers. People who were already under the supervision of scientists were involved - they took part in other studies.

Of 90,000 women and 46,000 men, they were identified as low risk. The researchers then calculated the population risk for each type of cancer. That is, they said how many people could not get sick if they changed their behavior. It turned out that:

82% of women and 78% of men with lung cancer may never have had it.
29% of women and 20% of men could have avoided bowel cancer.
30% of men and women may not develop pancreatic cancer.

Breast cancer, for example, is more difficult to prevent: no more than 4% of cases.

The general figures are as follows: 25% of women and 33% of men could not get sick. About half of all deaths were preventable.

Research is imperfect, there are no exceptions. This is not a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study that is considered the standard of evidence-based medicine. The subjects mainly worked in health care, that is, they were different from the general population. But the results show the approximate scale of how much health depends on our habits.

Just don't think that cancer patients are to blame for everything and do not deserve help. This is just information for thought, because we still cannot control a huge number of cancer cases.

How to protect yourself from cancer

What do you need to do to be in a group with a low health risk?

Quit smoking and last at least five years.
Limit alcohol intake. Women should not have more than one dose a day, men - more than two. That's quite a lot. The less you drink, the better.
Keep the body mass index within 18, 5-27, 5 points. Obesity starts at 30, but anything beyond 25 is overweight. However, it is not necessary to be thin, it is enough not to lead to obesity.
Devote 150 minutes a week to moderate workouts or 75 to active ones. Not so much.

Many are now happy to learn that they have a low chance of getting cancer. But this is not a reason not to strive for the best.

We are waiting for the magic cancer cure. Not the fact that we will wait or that it will not cost millions. And prevention is the cheapest and most effective remedy. Simple lifestyle changes will help not only fight cancer, but also prevent other diseases. So invest in yourself and enjoy your health.