Smoking, Alcohol Closely Associated With Most Cancers

Preventable risk factors like smoking and alcohol are closely associated with 11 of the 15 cancers in the US, finds a study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

The study finds that the cancer burden is 20 percent to 30 percent higher in African-Americans than in all races and ethnicities combined.

‘The cancer burden is 20 percent to 30 percent higher in African-Americans than in all races and ethnicities combined.’

To measure cancer burden, researchers from the American Cancer Society calculated the disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) lost to cancer. This measure combines mortality, incidence, survival, and quality of life into a single summary indicator.

DALYs lost to cancer were mostly related to premature death due to the disease (91 per cent), and only 9 percent related to impaired quality of life because of cancer or its treatment, or other disease-related issues. Lung cancer was by far the largest contributor of the loss of healthy years to all-cancer, accounting for 24 percent of the burden (2.4 million DALYs).

Next was breast (10 per cent) followed by colorectal (9 percent), pancreatic (6 percent), prostate (5 percent), leukemia (4 percent), liver (4 percent), brain (3 percent), non-Hodgkin lymphoma (3 percent) and ovarian (3 percent).

The four most-burdensome cancers (lung, breast, colorectal, and pancreas) caused about half of all DALYs.

Source: IANS