Join the Fight Against Cancer

We have the potential to greatly reduce the number of cancer deaths. Nine risk factors that can be modified cause one-third of the world's cancer deaths:

1. Smoking cigarettes and other tobacco use
2. Obesity
3. Physical inactivity
4. Excess alcohol consumption
5. Unsafe sex
6. Low fruit and vegetable intake
7. Air pollution
8. Indoor smoke from burning coal
9. Contaminated injections in health care settings

Another risk factor that will surely move into this list is failure to get vaccinated against certain viruses that are known to cause cancer. Vaccines are available today to prevent hepatitis B and human papilloma virus (HPV) infections. Hepatitis B is a major cause of liver cancer. HPV causes cervical, anal and oral cancers.

Join the Fight Against Cancer

No matter where in the world you live, you have control of the first five modifiable risk factors on the list. Most people living in developed countries can eat a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, but choose not to do so.

These are general ways to help decrease your risk of cancer. You also can add specific measures related to certain types of cancer. For example:

• Some women take estrogen, with or without progesterone, to manage menopausal symptoms. They should use the lowest dose for the shortest period of time. Taking female hormones for more than four years increases a woman's breast cancer risk.



• People who go to tanning booths or spend too much time in the sun greatly increase their risk of developing skin cancer. However, a few minutes of sunlight daily boosts vitamin D levels. People with higher blood levels of vitamin D have a lower risk of other cancers than people with very low vitamin D levels.

The main controversy today is about whether screening for and early detection of cancer is effective. Many well respected organizations continue to push for regular cancer screening. But widespread testing with mammograms, colonoscopy and prostate-specific antigen blood tests is very expensive.

One-third of cancer deaths could be prevented if we could eliminate the nine risk factors that we can change. What if we took the amount of money spent on screening today and instead used that money to wage war on those risk factors? I believe that this approach would prevent many more cancers.