Avoid 90% Of Cancers

Forecasting who will be struck by cancer is not piece of cake. Of course, there are some widely known habits, like tanning and smoking, which majorly raise the risk of getting cancer. But it is all about the genes and bad luck otherwise, right? Well, this might not be the case.

A recent research that was published in the journal Nature found that almost 70 – 90% of cancers are the consequence of external or so-called “extrinsic” factors—including the lifestyle habits and the environmental experiences as well. Or in other words we can simply say that 70 – 90% of cancers have no association with genes or nothing to do with a roll of the metaphorical dice.

This study, which was conducted by Stony Brook University’s researchers, was in fact a reanalysis of facts published last year by Johns Hopkins’ scientists, who came to find that around 2/3^rd of disparities in the risk of getting cancer were because of the random cell mutations—i.e., bad luck. This new research concluded in pretty much opposite results.

The senior author and MD, Yusuf Hannun, said that they got a gut feeling regarding those bad luck findings and they knew that that finding had to be wrong. He said that they were quite sure about their finding and data.

While further research is required to conclude the final word, it is quite notable that not all the extrinsic risk factors are very easy to control. “Everyone recognizes about cancer and smoking threat, and hopefully you smoke under no circumstances or you simply need to quit,” says Hannun. He also directs keeping an eye on your weight, eating a healthy diet, limiting alcohol intake, and wearing sunscreen. “But it is quite possible that you may be living in a location where it contains more radon in the environment, which is possibly changeable by relocating somewhere else. We all take gamma radiation, but these are received more by the pilots. It is difficult to say that it is modifiable.