About World Cancer Day
World Cancer Day every 4th February is the global uniting initiative led by the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), raising worldwide awareness improving education and catalysing personal, collective and government action.
Saving Hand Development Initiative (SHADE-IN), under her neighborhood transformation initiative wishes to join UICC in educating the public about cancer and its prevention.
Key Cancer Facts📊✅
- ☑️10 million people die from cancer every year.
- ☑️At least one third of common cancers are preventable.
- ☑️Cancer is the second-leading cause of death worldwide.
- ☑️70% of cancer deaths occur in low-to-middle income countries.
- ☑️Up to 3.7 million lives could be saved each year by implementing resource appropriate strategies for prevention, early detection and treatment.
- ☑️The total annual economic cost of cancer is estimated at US$1.16 trillion.
What is Cancer?
Cancer is a disease which occurs when changes in a group of normal cells within the body lead to uncontrolled, abnormal growth forming a lump called a tumour; this is true of all cancers except leukaemia (cancer of the blood). If left untreated, tumours can grow and spread into the surrounding normal tissue, or to other parts of the body via the bloodstream and lymphatic systems, and can affect the digestive, nervous and circulatory systems or release hormones that may affect body function.
What Causes Cancer?
Cancer is a complex group of diseases with many possible causes. In this section you can learn more about the known and possible causes of cancer, as well as general information about carcinogens and how genetics play a role in cancer.
Common Causes of Cancer
Learn about some of the most common causes of cancer, and what you can do to lower your exposure or risk.
➡️Smoking and Tobacco
➡️Diet and Physical Activity
➡️Sun and Other Types of Radiation
➡️Viruses and Other Infections
Determining if Something Is a Carcinogen
What is a carcinogen?
Substances and exposures that can lead to cancer are called carcinogens.
In general, the American Cancer Society does not determine if something causes cancer (that is, if it is a carcinogen), but we do look to other respected organizations for help with this.
When a substance or exposure has been labeled a carcinogen, it means it has been studied extensively by researchers, and one or more agencies have evaluated the evidence and determined it to be a cause of cancer.
Carcinogens and the cancer connection
Cancer is the result of changes in a cell’s DNA – its genetic “blueprint.” Some of these changes may be inherited from our parents. Others may be caused by outside exposures, which are often referred to as environmental factors. Environmental factors can include a wide range of exposures, such as:
➡️Lifestyle factors (nutrition, tobacco and alcohol use, physical inactivity, etc.)
➡️Naturally occurring exposures (ultraviolet light, radon gas, infectious agents, etc.)
➡️Medical treatments (radiation and medicines including chemotherapy, hormone drugs, drugs that suppress the immune system, etc.)
➡️Workplace exposures
➡️Household exposures
➡️Pollution
Some carcinogens cause cancer by changing a cell’s DNA. Others do not affect DNA directly, but lead to cancer in other ways. For example, they may cause cells to divide at a faster than normal rate, which could increase the chances that DNA changes will occur.
Carcinogens do not cause cancer in every case, all the time. Some clearly raise a person’s risk of one or more types of cancer. But even the strongest carcinogens don’t raise the risk of all types of cancer.
Substances labeled as carcinogens can have different levels of cancer-causing potential. Some might increase cancer risk after only a short exposure, but others might only cause cancer after prolonged, high levels of exposure. And for any particular person, the risk of developing cancer depends on many factors, including how they are exposed to a carcinogen, the length and intensity of the exposure, and the person's genetic makeup.
Symptoms and Prevention of Cancer:
The American Cancer Society developed this simple reminder years ago:
C: Change in bowel or bladder habits
A: A sore that does not heal
U: Unusual bleeding or discharge
T: Thickening or lump in the breast or elsewhere
I: Indigestion or difficulty in swallowing
O: Obvious change in a wart or mole
N: Nagging cough or hoarseness
Prevention of Cancer
Early diagnosis is important, but can you go one better? Can you reduce your risk of getting cancer in the first place? It sounds too good to be true, but it's not. Scientists at the Harvard School of Public Health estimate that up to 75% of American cancer deaths can be prevented. The 10 commandments of cancer prevention are:
1. Avoid tobacco in all its forms, including exposure to secondhand smoke.You don't have to be an international scientist to understand how you can try to protect yourself and your family.
2. Eat properly. Reduce your consumption of saturated fat and red meat, which may increase the risk of colon cancer and a more aggressive form of prostate cancer. Increase your consumption of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
3. Exercise regularly. Physical activity has been linked to a reduced risk of colon cancer. Exercise also appears to reduce a woman's risk of breast and possibly reproductive cancers. Exercise will help protect you even if you don't lose weight.
4. Stay lean. Obesity increases the risk of many forms of cancer. Calories count; if you need to slim down, take in fewer calories and burn more with exercise.
5. If you choose to drink, limit yourself to an average of one drink a day. Excess alcohol increases the risk of cancers of the mouth, larynx (voice box), esophagus (food pipe), liver, and colon; it also increases a woman's risk of breast cancer. Smoking further increases the risk of many alcohol-induced malignancies.
6. Avoid unnecessary exposure to radiation. Get medical imaging studies only when you need them. Check your home for residential radon, which increases the risk of lung cancer. Protect yourself from ultraviolet radiation in sunlight, which increases the risk of melanomas and other skin cancers. But don't worry about electromagnetic radiation from high-voltage power lines or radiofrequency radiation from microwaves and cell phones. They do not cause cancer.
7. Avoid exposure to industrial and environmental toxins such as asbestos fibers, benzene, aromatic amines, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
8. Avoid infections that contribute to cancer, including hepatitis viruses, HIV, and the human papillomavirus. Many are transmitted sexually or through contaminated needles.
9. Make quality sleep a priority. Admittedly, the evidence linking sleep to cancer is not strong. But poor and insufficient sleep increases is associated with weight gain, which is a cancer risk factor.
10. Get enough vitamin D. Many experts now recommend 800 to 1,000 IU a day, a goal that's nearly impossible to attain without taking a supplement. Although protection is far from proven, evidence suggests that vitamin D may help reduce the risk of prostate cancer, colon cancer, and other malignancies. But don't count on other supplements.
Common Cancer Types
➡️ Bladder Cancer
➡️ Breast Cancer
➡️ Colon and Rectal Cancer
➡️ Endometrial Cancer
➡️ Kidney Cancer
➡️ Leukemia
➡️ Liver Cancer
➡️ Lung Cancer
➡️ Melanoma
➡️ Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma
➡️ Pancreatic Cancer
➡️ Prostate Cancer
➡️ Thyroid Cancer
Since it is preventable, let's focus on prevention. While medically, it can be treated but not cured, then prevention should be topmost. Above all, faith in God is key, especially for patients of cancer or any other disease. Cancer is not something you would wish for your enemy. It is quite expensive. The Government should also provide subsidized treatments and tests for cancer.
Lift Above Poverty Organisation (LAPO), an organisation mentoring SHADE-IN has been in the front burner of fighting against CANCER.
Feel free to drop your comments here or contact us if you have any further enquiries: https://shade-in.blogspot.com/p/contact.html?m=1
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References:
https://www.uicc.org/events/world-cancer-day-2021
https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-causes.html
https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-causes/general-info/determining-if-something-is-a-carcinogen.html
https://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletter_article/the-10-commandments-of-cancer-prevention
https://www.cancer.gov/types
Compiled by:
Bliss Ojeruse,
For:
SHADE-IN.
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