05 Feb WHO predicts global cancer surge fuelled by alcohol, smoking and obesity
A global drive to tackle the causes of cancer linked to lifestyle, such as alcohol abuse, sugar consumption and obesity, has been urged by the World Health Organisation as it predicts the number of new cases could soar 70% to nearly 25 million a year over the next 20 years.
Half of these cases are preventable, says the UN’s public health arm in its 2014 World Cancer Report, because they are linked to lifestyle. It is implausible to think we can treat our way out of the disease, say the authors, arguing that the focus must now be on preventing new cases.
Even the richest countries will struggle to cope with the spiralling costs of treatment and care for patients, and the lower income countries, where numbers are expected to be highest, are ill-equipped for the burden to come.
The incidence of cancer globally has increased from 12.7m new cases in 2008 to 14.1m in 2012, when there were 8.2m deaths. By 2032, it is expected to hit almost 25m a year – a 70% increase.
The biggest burden will be in low- and middle-income countries, where the population is increasing and living longer. They are hit by two types of cancers – first, those triggered by infections, such as cervical cancers, which are still very prevalent in poorer countries that do not have screening, let alone the HPV vaccine.
Second, there are increasingly cancers associated with the lifestyles of more affluent countries “with increasing use of tobacco, consumption of alcohol and highly processed foods and lack of physical activity”, writes Margaret Chan, WHO director general, in an introduction to the report.
Dr Christopher Wild, director of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and joint author of the report, said when people know his job, they asked whether a cure for cancer had been found, yet few think about preventing the disease in the first place.
“Despite exciting advances, the report shows that we cannot treat our way out of the cancer problem. More commitment to prevention and early detection is desperately needed in order to complement improved treatments and address the alarming rise in the cancer burden globally.”
His co-author, Dr Bernard Stewart from the University of New South Wales, talked of “the crucial role of prevention in combating the tidal wave of cancer” and called for discussion on how to encourage people to change their lifestyles, including a tax on sugared drinks, which could be one possible brake on cancers caused by obesity and lack of physical exercise.
If there’s any positive note in the study, which combined data from more than 40 countries, it’s that upwards of 50 percent of all cancer cases are deemed preventable through a combination of diet, exercise and early detection.
And if lifestyle choices are behind about half all cancer cases, some are wondering if world governments shouldn’t do more to encourage people to make healthier lifestyle choices. For example, the number of cigarette smokers in the US has been cut in half since anti-smoking advertising campaigns were first launched.
The WHO report says lung cancer caused by smoking cigarettes (1.8 million cases a year) is still the leading case of fatal cancer around the world. It’s also the most lethal, with 1.6 million deaths each year, meaning nearly all cases are fatal.
“About a third of the most common cancers could be prevented through being a healthy weight, eating a healthy diet and being regularly physically active,” Amanda McLean, general manager of the World Cancer Research Fund, told Sky News. “These results show that many people still seem to mistakenly accept their chances of getting cancer as a throw of the dice.”
Reducing alcohol consumption and curbing obesity rates were cited as the other two leading methods to reduce the likelihood of getting cancer.
Further, statistical analysis reveals some positives. For instance, for some countries, increasing cancer rates are tied to increasingly elderly populations. In other words, the more advanced a country becomes, the longer its population lives, which drives up the total number of cancer cases even if other factors remain the same.
The World Cancer Report, an 800-page volume on the state of cancer knowledge, which is the first for five years, must open up the debate, added Stewart.
“In relation to alcohol, for instance, we are all aware of the effects of being intoxicated but there is a burden of disease not talked about because it is not recognised,” he said.
The report shows that alcohol-attributable cancers were responsible for a total of 337,400 deaths worldwide in 2010, mostly among men.
The majority were liver cancer deaths, but drinking alcohol is also a risk for cancers of the mouth, oesophagus, bowel, stomach, pancreas, breast and others.
“Labelling, availability and the price of alcohol should all be on the agenda,” said Stewart.
So should taxation of sugar-sweetened drinks, he said. The report says efforts to reduce the percentage of fizzy drinks that contain substantial amounts of added sugar should become a high priority……