• Posted July 12, 2024

Four in 10 Cancer Cases, Nearly Half of Cancer Deaths Linked to Lifestyle

Nearly half of cancer deaths and 4 of 10 cases of cancer are linked to a person’s lifestyle, a new study says.

Cigarette smoking remains the biggest cancer risk, contributing to 30% of cancer deaths and 20% of cancer cases, results show.

But excess body weight, drinking, lack of exercise, diet and skipping cancer-preventing vaccinations also increase a person’s risk of developing or dying from cancer, researchers said.

For the study, researchers analyzed nationwide data on cancer for 2019 and its risk factors to estimate the number of cases and deaths attributable to lifestyle risk factors.

Cigarette smoking contributes to 56% of all potentially preventable cancers in men and 40% of those in women, results show.

“The number of lung cancer deaths attributable to cigarette smoking in the United States is alarming,” given that smoking has greatly declined during the past few decades, lead researcher Dr. Farhad Islami, senior scientific director of cancer disparity research at the American Cancer Society, said in a news release.

“This finding underscores the importance of implementing comprehensive tobacco control policies in each state to promote smoking cessation, as well as heightened efforts to increase screening for early detection of lung cancer, when treatment could be more effective,” Islami added.

Excess body weight contributed to about 8% of potentially preventable cancers, alcohol consumption to about 5%, exposure to the sun’s UV radiation about 5%, and physical inactivity about 3%.

“Interventions to help maintain healthy body weight and diet can also substantially reduce the number of cancer cases and deaths in the country, especially given the increasing incidence of several cancer types associated with excess body weight, particularly in younger individuals,” Islami said.

Looking at specific cancer types, researchers found that some could be completely or significantly avoided through lifestyle choices.

All cervical cancer cases can be avoided, researchers estimated, by vaccinating against human papillomavirus (HPV).

“Effective vaccines are available for hepatitis B virus, that causes liver cancer, and HPV, which can cause several cancer types, including cervical, other anogenital, and oropharyngeal cancers,” senior researcher Dr. Ahmedin Jemal, senior vice president of surveillance and health equity science at the American Cancer Society, said in a news release.

“Vaccination at the recommended time can substantially reduce the risk of chronic infection, and consequently, cancers associated with these viruses,” Jemal added.

Lifestyle choices also are behind 92% of melanomas, 94% of anal cancers, 88% of lung cancers, 85% of throat cancers, and 83% of oral cancers, researchers estimated.

The new study appears in the journal CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians.

More information

The National Cancer Institute has more about cancer risk factors.

SOURCE: American Cancer Society, news release, July 11, 2024