Change your lifestyle to keep cancer at bay

A report published by the medical journal The Lancet Oncology, analysed International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) data from 184 countries in 2008 in order to examine how current and future cancer trends

vary between countries based on their levels of development, as measured by their Human Development Index (HDI, it is a composite indicator of life expectancy, education, and gross domestic product per head).

Agreeing with the report Dr Senthil J Rajappa, Consultant Medical Oncologist, Basavatarakam Indo American

Cancer Hospital & Research centre says that it is a dangerous sign of the future, and preventive measures must be taken urgently especially at the lifestyle level.

Cancers that are caused by infections, such as cervical cancer and some liver and stomach cancers, are falling. But the decline will be outpaced by a surge in cancers linked to hormonal imbalance, bad diet and exercise habits,

smoking and drinking too much alcohol which lead to cancers of the lung, colon and breast. Among the regions with highest HDI, cancers of the female breast, lung, colorectum, and prostate accounted for half the

overall cancer burden, whereas in medium HDI regions, cancers of the oesophagus, stomach, and liver were also common, and together these seven cancers comprised 62 per cent of the total cancer burden. In low HDI regions, cervical cancer was more common than both breast cancer and liver cancer. Nine different cancers were the most commonly diagnosed in men across 184 countries, with cancers of the prostate, lung, and liver being the most common. Breast and cervical cancers were the most common among women. In medium HDI and high HDI settings, decreases in cervical and stomach cancer incidence seem to be offset by increases in the incidence of cancers of the female breast, prostate, and colorectum. If the cancer-specific and sexspecific trends estimated in this study continue, an increase in the incidence of all-cancer cases from 12·7 million new cases in 2008 to 22·2 million by 2030 is predicted, which is around a 75 per cent rise worldwide. Says Dr Senthil J Rajappa, “It might be possible to avoid as much as half of future cancers by persuading people to eat healthier, quit smoking and exercise, besides early detection.”