More than half of all cancer is
preventable, and society has the
knowledge to act on this information
today, according to Washington
University researchers at the
Siteman Cancer Center and
Barnes-Jewish Hospital.
In an article published in Science
Translational Medicine in March
2012, investigators outline obstacles
they say stand in the way of making
a huge dent in the cancer burden in
the United States and around the
world. “We actually have an enormous
amount of data about the causes
and preventability of cancer,” says
epidemiologist Graham Colditz, MD,
DrPH, associate director of prevention
and control at Siteman.
What we know, according to Colditz
and his co-authors, is that lifestyle
choices—from tobacco use to diet
and exercise—play a significant role
in causing cancer.
For instance, smoking
alone is responsible for a
third of all cancer cases
in the United States;
excess body weight
and obesity account for
another 20 percent.
But beyond individual habits, the
research team argues that the
structure of society itself influences
the extent of the cancer burden and
can be changed to reduce it. The
team lists a number of obstacles in
the way of broad cancer-prevention
strategies, including:
- Skepticism that cancer can
be prevented
- Research that focuses on
treatment, not prevention
- Societal factors that affect health,
such as tobacco policy and government
subsidies that don’t do enough to
discourage unhealthy behavior and,
especially in low-income communities,
make unhealthy choices more accessible
Nevertheless, Colditz and his colleagues
say that broad change is possible. One
example is the relatively quick elimination
of unhealthy trans fats from the national
diet. And the National Cancer Institute
(NCI) has reported that lung cancer rates
are declining in both men and women,
supporting the benefits of tighter tobacco
control policy.
To learn more about cancer prevention, visit 8ways.wustl.edu.