The cancer age gap is closing, to the detriment of younger generations.
A new study has shown that normally healthy young adults are being diagnosed with cancer at a worrying rate.
Researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital noted that more and more people under the age of 50 are being diagnosed with cancer of the breast, colon, esophagus, kidney, liver, pancreas and more, globally, in a trend that has taken a sharp upward turn . the year 1990.
“From our data, we see something called the birth cohort effect. This effect shows that each successive group of people born at a later time (eg, a decade later) have a higher risk of developing cancer later in life, likely because of the risk factors they were exposed to at a young age,” Dr. Shuji Ogino, Brigham and Women’s professor of pathology and physician-scientist, said in a news release.
“We found that this risk increases with each generation,” Ogino continued. “For example, people born in 1960 experienced a higher risk of cancer before their 50th birthday than people born in 1950, and we predict that this level of risk will continue to increase in successive generations.”
Cancer is a genetic disease: it is caused by changes in genes that cause errors in cell division and tumors. Some of these gene changes are inherited, but the new study, published in Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology, focused on environmental factors that damage DNA and contribute to cancer growth.
The researchers found that there was an increase in young people with cancer.fake images
Cancer-causing toxins may be more rampant than people realize. There are some well-known risks in the world, such as high UV exposure or cigarette smoking, while emerging research now points to second and even third-hand smoke, such as touching surfaces contaminated with smoke residue, as significant carcinogens . , also.
Looking at the incidence of 14 types of cancer, Ogino, along with the study’s lead author, Dr. Tomotaka Ugai, and their team found an increasing trend of cancer presence and diagnosis before the age of 50.
Harmful exposures at a young age, which could point to problematic diet, lifestyle behaviors and environmental pollution, could play a vital role. Since those factors have changed dramatically in recent decades, scientists have suggested that a “Westernized” lifestyle could be a major contributor to cancer development.
Alcohol use, smoking, obesity, consumption of highly processed foods, and lack of sleep are potential risk factors, many of which are increasing around the world.
“Among the 14 cancers on the rise that we studied, eight were related to the digestive system. The food we eat feeds the microorganisms in our gut,” said Ugai. “Diet directly affects the composition of the microbiome, and eventually these changes can influence disease risk and outcomes.”
Although the team was unable to adequately analyze low- and middle-income countries due to insufficient data, Ogino and Ugai hope to continue their cancer research and work with international research groups in the future.
Source: nypost.com