Smoking and other risk factors cause almost half of cancer deaths: Study

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• Aug 19, 2022 | Dhupali Das

This implies that these factors were responsible for 44.4% of all cancer-related fatalities worldwide...

Digital Desk: A cancer study reveals that smoking, drinking alcohol, being overweight, and other risk factors account for over half of all cancer-related global deaths. Even though the exact cause of cancer has not been discovered, researchers at the University of Washington's school of medicine have assessed how risk factors contribute to cancer deaths globally, The Guardian reported. 

Based on the study, the main causes of cancer deaths include smoking, drinking alcohol, and having a high body mass index (BMI). In total, risk factors are responsible for nearly 4.45 million cancer deaths a year, according to the findings published in the Lancet that used the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors (GBD) 2019 study.

This implies that these factors were responsible for 44.4% of all cancer-related fatalities worldwide. In 2019, estimated risk factors were responsible for 50.6% of all cancer deaths in men (2.88 million), compared to 36.3% of cancer deaths in women (1.58 million).

Tracheal, bronchial, and lung cancer were the most common causes of death in both sexes when smoking was involved. 36.9% of cancer fatalities that can be linked to risk factors are attributed to these.

"Smoking is still the main cause of cancer risk worldwide, but there are other significant factors that affect how common cancer is. Our findings can assist researchers and policymakers in identifying important risk factors that could be targeted in efforts to reduce cancer-related fatalities and ill health locally, nationally, and internationally," Dr Christopher Murray, co-senior author of the study, said.

The next three cancers on the list for women were cervical cancer (17.9%), colon and rectum cancer (15.8%), and breast cancer (11%). Oesophageal cancer (9.7%), stomach cancer (6.6%), and colon and rectum cancer (13.3%) were the most common cancers in men.

Experts believe that, while it is impossible to prevent all cancer cases, eating well, quitting smoking, limiting alcohol consumption, and exercising can help reduce the future cancer burden.