Research has shown that around 4 in 10 cancers may be prevented. Healthista spoke to Dr Raj Arora on how we will reduce the chance and help prevent cancer
Cancer is when abnormal cells divide in an uncontrolled way and cancerous cells can often travel through the body and spread to other tissues.
There are greater than 200 cancers and 1 in 2 people within the UK will get cancer of their lifetime. There are around 1000 latest cancer cases within the UK each day. Greater than half of latest cancer cases in females are breast, lung or bowel cancer.
Red flag symptoms of cancer for ladies include:
- Change in bowel or bladder habit
- Lumps or thickening in breasts/armpitd
- Unusual bleeding from vagina or post menopausal bleeding/bleeding after sex
- Blood in stools
- Difficulty swallowing
- Drained on a regular basis
- Unintentional weight reduction
- Change in a skin lesion
- Coughing up blood
- Shortness of breath
- Vomiting
- Persistent abdominal pain
It will be important to hunt help if you happen to are in any respect frightened about symptoms that you might have. I often confer with red flag symptoms of cancer but often patients can see their GP with more general symptoms of not feeling well and this needs to be equally explored and never discounted.
Prevention
Research has shown that around 4 in 10 cancers may be prevented. So how can we reduce our risk of developing cancer? Not all cancers may be prevented but there are things that you would be able to do to cut back your risk.
As a way to understand this, it can be crucial to know the chance aspects of cancer and ways wherein we will reduce those risk aspects. Age, genetics and family history are all risk aspects that can not be modified and may increase our risk of developing cancer.
Nonetheless, the chance aspects below CAN be modified and will help lower our risk.
#1 Quit smoking
Not smoking is one of the vital effective ways to cut back your risk of cancer. Harmful chemicals (Carcinogens) from smoking not only impact our lungs but may also have a detrimental effect on the remainder of the body.
After 12 years of not smoking, your likelihood of developing lung cancer falls to greater than half that of somebody who smokes. After 15 years, your probabilities of getting lung cancer are almost the identical as someone who has never smoked.
#2 Keep a healthy weight
Being chubby and obesity is the second largest reason behind cancer within the UK. Keeping a healthy weight reduces the chance of 13 several types of cancer. Extra fat cells within the body can send out signals to other cells in our body telling them to divide more often and this process can result in cancer.
Resources on British Heart Foundation and Diabetes UK website will help with this – weight-reduction plan plans etc.
#3 Eat a healthy balanced weight-reduction plan
Aim to include a number of fruit, vegetables, wholegrain foods – high in fibre and healthy proteins as these will help protect the body from oxidants that may result in cancer.
Cut down on processed food, red meats, alcohol and high calorie food/drinks as these have been linked to a better risk of cancer.
#4 Sun safety is essential
Skin cancers are on the rise and being protected within the sun reduces the chance of skin cancer. UV radiation from the sun or sunbeds can damage our skin cells and make them divide in an unnatural way – this may result in skin cancers. Ensure you’re using a broad spectrum sunscreen – SPF 50.
Keep out of the sun when the sun is at it’s highest (between 11am -3pm) and wear covered up clothing where possible.
#5 Cut down alcohol
Reducing alcohol can reduce your risk of seven kinds of skin cancer. All sorts of alcohol can result in cellular damage and damage to your organs. Alcohol has been linked to pancreatic, stomach and prostate cancers amongst others.
#6 Get the HPV vaccine
HPV = Human papilloma virus. This can be a quite common virus and typically doesn’t cause any problems and most of the people won’t even know that they’ve the virus. Some high risk kinds of HPV can result in cancer.
The vaccine protects against 4 kinds of high risk HPV. These HPV strains cause cervical cancer, cancers of the vagina, vulva, penis and anus.
A 2021 study found that cervical cancer rates were reduced by almost 90 per cent in women of their 20’s in those women who were offered the vaccine aged 12 to 13. The vaccine can also be available to people as much as the age of 25 who could have missed their vaccination at college.
#7 Check your body
To have an awareness of find out how to check your body and to search for signs of cancer is essential. Know find out how to check your breasts for lumps/thickening and signs of breast cancer.
There are a lot of online resources that will help with this, including the NHS website.
#8 Regular screening (women)
In women, and people with a cervix it can be crucial to stick to regular cervical and breast screening programmes in order that any changes or detection of cancer may be picked up early.
Should you are on HRT – it can be crucial to know the small risk related to taking hormones. Combined HRT and oestrogen only HRT only barely increases the chance of breast cancer. This increased risk gets greater the longer HRT is used.
Combined HRT affects breast cancer risk greater than oestrogen only HRT. Combined and oestrogen only HRT only barely increases risk of ovarian cancer and when HRT is stopped this risk starts to return down.
Combined HRT doesn’t affect womb cancer risk and oestrogen only HRT increases the chance of womb cancer. This increased risk gets greater the longer HRT is used and will remain for some years after HRT is stopped.
Oestrogen only HRT is frequently only prescribed to individuals who aren’t vulnerable to womb cancer (ie shouldn’t have a womb). Generally for most individuals the advantages of HRT will outweigh the risks but it can be crucial to have an in depth consultation together with your doctor and to debate risk before commencing on hormone alternative therapy.
Dr Raj Arora is a GP, the founding father of @thefacebible and one in all the UK’s leading medical educators. Her passion lies in mental health awareness, women’s health and skincare.
As a female GP, Dr Raj Arora has at all times been captivated with educating other women with regarding to women’s health and using her Instagram platform @dr_rajarora to teach, inform, empower and encourage her followers.