6 elements driving most cancers disaster in younger individuals: main report discovered
Young people should pay attention to six key factors to avoid becoming a victim of a growing cancer epidemic, according to a major report.
They should avoid overusing antibiotics, eat red meat no more than three times per week, wear condoms and avoid binge drinking, the country’s largest cancer research organization said.
The rising rates of multiple cancers in young people are front and center in the American Association for Cancer Research’s new annual report published last night.
Cancer is thought to be a caused by a combination between your genetics and your environment, but about 40 percent of all diagnosed cases can be traced back to one of these risk factors, the report said. Cervical cancer, for example, is linked to the STD human papilloma virus.
Early-onset cancers in the US have been on the rise since 1995, including in the colon, rectum, cervix, prostate, breast and endometrium.
The AACR report estimated that, in all ages, two million new cancer cases will be diagnosed in the US in 2024.
Of those, about 4.2 percent will be in people between age 18 and 50, who are traditionally thought of as too young to develop cancer.
Cancer is thought to be caused by an unlucky combination of your genes and environment.
Still, the ACCR scientists said about 40 percent of all cases can be linked to six different modifiable risk factors.
For young people, these include: unhealthy diet, obesity, chemicals in the environment, antibiotics, alcohol and sedentary behaviors.
To start, only around a quarter of adults and one in six high schoolers meet the CDC recommended exercise guidelines.
The agency says everyone should get 150 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity each week, such as jogging, swimming or playing sports, and two days of muscle-strengthening activity such as lifting weights or palates.
Low levels of exercise during youth is associated with risk for developing cancer as an adult.
The report also highlighted diet as a major driver of young people cancers.
Specifically, diets that rely on red meat, highly processed foods and lacking fresh produce, are of concern the AACR scientists said.
These recommendations lead the group to say that no more than three servings of red meat should be eaten per week.
They also say that processed meats like hot dogs, bacon and salami should not be included in a regular diet since they have been linked to an increase risk of multiple cancers.
Adolescents and young adults tend to have less nutritious diets than older adults – opting for the convenience found in fast food.
Forty-five percent of US young adults’ reported consuming fast food daily between 2013 and 2017 – compared with 37 percent of adults over 40.
‘Reducing or eliminating consumption of highly processed foods, fast foods, and foods and beverages high in sugar is essential to curbing the obesity epidemic and reducing the burden of associated cancers,’ the report said.
They also recommend avoiding beverages – like soda, juice, canned coffees and energy drinks – that have added sugars in them. They have been linked to liver, colon cancer and diabetes.
Studies have shown that consuming one or more sugar-sweetened beverage per day made someone’s odds of developing liver cancer 1.8 times higher than those who didn’t.
In response to these findings, the AACR report highlighted solutions like a sugar tax.
In general, early-onset cancer cases, defined as those between age 18 and 50, have been on the rise in the US since 1995
The NCI’s latest data on colorectal cancer only goes up to 2021, as does the AACR’s newest report. The AACR is separate from the NCI, and its a publicly funded charity
This method, which is currently in use in eight jurisdictions in the US, places a higher price tag on drinks made with added sugar.
Using this tax significantly reduced the amount of sugary beverages consumed in the areas, research from the Obesity Evidence Hub concluded.
After sugar, the researchers took aim at alcohol.
Excessive alcohol consumption raises the risk for six different kinds of cancer (head and neck, throat, breast, colorectal, liver and stomach) and has been linked to 5.4 percent of total cancers in the US.
Young adults who consumed a high amount of alcohol in early adulthood increased their risk of colorectal cancer under 50 by 1.5 times.
‘Unfortunately, awareness about the link between alcohol and cancer is still low,’ the report said.
Alcohol affects each part of the body differently, but generally, it can increase cancer risk by making it harder for our cells to respond to damage and change, making them more likely to mutate into cancerous formations, according to Cancer Research UK.
Also, drinking alcohol can temporarily wear down the cells in our mouth and throat, making them more permeable to other carcinogenic chemicals, like cigarette smoke.
All these factors can increase someone’s likelihood of becoming overweight and obese.
Being overweight was linked to 7.6 percent of all cancers in the US. Obesity has been on the rise in the US – raising 37 percent from 2000, to about 41.9 percent in 2020.
There are 15 different kinds of cancer linked to being overweight or obese – from blood to brain to bladder.
Losing weight can be an effective way to reduce the risk of obesity-related cancers.
The report said previous medical interventions that reduce cancer, like weight loss surgery, have been shown to be particularly effective – and they are monitoring how newer treatments like Ozempic and Wegovy may likewise help prevent cancer.
In addition to these daily habits, the researchers said that other medical conditions can be contributing to the rise of cancers in young people.
This includes overusing antibiotics.
Dr Foti, the chief executive officer of the AACR, said she hopes this will spur federal investment in cancer research, which she said has begun seeing ‘extraordinary advances’ in recent years
Early signs of colorectal cancer include changes in bowel habits, abdominal cramping, weight loss and fatigue. These are symptoms common to many other diseases as well, which means the disease can be hard to catch
Taking antibiotics for a prolonged period of time can mess with the unique biology of the gastrointestinal system – known as the microbiome.
This bacterial layer helps protect the gut against harm and respond to infections and illness, and it can be harmed by long term antibiotic use. This could allow cancer to more easily set up camp in the gut, the researchers theorized
Studies have shown that people under 50 taking antibiotics were 1.5 times more likely to develop colon cancer, whereas people over 50 in the same scenario were only 1.1 times more likely to develop the disease.
In addition to antibiotics, the report highlights the affect of missing out on vaccinations for the human papilloma virus, a highly contagious STD linked to head, neck, throat, cervical and mouth cancers.
There are a series of vaccinations available for adolescents to prevent HPV, and it’s been shown to be nearly 100 percent effective at stopping girls from developing cervical cancer later in life.
But in the US, only 38 percent of children had received one or more doses of this vaccination, compared to 76 percent of children in the UK and 84 percent in Australia.
Finally, the AACR report highlighted the risk of being exposed to chemicals in the environment, but didn’t specify which chemicals.
For example, previous research from the National Cancer Institute has linked drinking water that contains nitrates, a chemical that is made when fertilizer gets exposed to the air, to colorectal cancers.
Despite these challenges, Dr Margaret Foti, the CEO of AACR, said that their report, shows that in most other groups, cancer prevention has been working. This year alone US regulators approved 15 different new cancer treatments.
She said she wants these findings to help spur more national investment into research.
Dr Foti said: It is our hope that the 14th annual will help to increase knowledge about cancer and raise awareness about the urgency of federal support for scientific and medical research.
