Is it just because we dont die of other things first?
In: Biology
There’s some evidence that prolonged/constant exposure to specific chemicals in plastics (BPA, phthalates, dioxins) might be contributing to increased cancer risks. Mostly through ingesting the chemicals after the plastic has been heated up and transferred into food/drink. The science is still out and studies are still ongoing and currently inconclusive… but I’m inclined to believe that has something to do with increased cancer diagnoses. It should be noted, however, that less people (relative to population) are actually dying from cancer these days.
In terms of young people- I haven’t heard about a specific increase there. But yes, mostly the cancer rates are increasing because people are living longer and not dying of other things first. Majority of cancer cases are in people over the age of 60.
The largest reason why it’s increasing for young people is that our techniques and technology for the detection of cancer have improved significantly thanks to all the money thats been going in to cancer research for the past few decades. So we’re catching it earlier and more accurately. Even the non harmful benign cancers are being caught sooner.
The other reason is an increased awareness of cancer. People have been educated on what skin cancer looks like and that any unusual lumps really should be looked at by a doctor and not dismissed as something you can ignore.
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Just to add, there are also many incidental findings of cancer. I had a kidney stone at 40 and when they did an MRI they found a renal cell carcinoma in the opposite side kidney. Just a fluke, but you know what Kevin says….
Research suggests that millennials are twice as likely to develop some cancers as baby boomers were at the same age, and obesity is the likely culprit. Research has found that the incidence of several cancers is on the rise among younger adults in the United States.
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For what it’s worth as a DNA scientist I speculate a lot of it has to do with women having children later in life. All cells in our bodies accumulate damage as we age. Cancers are just specific combinations of damage (mutations) that disrupt the cell cycle, and the result is uncontrolled growth AKA cancer. Purely biologically speaking the best time for most women to give birth to the healthiest baby is shortly after puberty.
Not really a proper answer, but radiation, contaminants, so many things are getting in and affecting our bodies that shouldn’t be.
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The other commentators have a lot of good info. But Also lot of it comes down to basic health. Obesity is now an epidemic. Overly processed foods and overly sugary foods.
Many cancers actually feed off of sugar so our food these days is a perfect cancer food.
There are plenty of people that use diet changes to help (not cure/ and used alongside another treeatments) but diet changes can actually help cancer treatments by starving the cancer through eliminating sugar from the diet.
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