The head of the world’s leading cancer prevention organization has advised that young people should be proactive about their health due to the increase in the number of cancer cases reported globally.
Although the reason for the increase in the number of patients around the world has not been revealed, it is said that cancer patients may increase due to a number of reasons.
Head of Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences at MD Anderson Cancer Center Ernest Hawke has warned young people that rising cancer rates are becoming a global phenomenon, not just in Australia.
Cancer data released by the Australian government in August revealed that the number of annual cancer diagnoses could exceed 200,000 by 2034.
That is a 20 percent increase from the 169,000 cases reported this year.
By 2034, the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare says there will be around 209,000 cancer cases diagnosed in Australia with the growing population and estimated cancer rates.
Between 2010 and 2014, melanoma was the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the 15- to 24-year-old age group, accounting for 15 percent of all cancer diagnoses.
Cancer rates among young people continue to rise and may be due to changes in diet, rising obesity rates, increased use of antibiotics, or other events that occurred early in life, Dr. Ernst Hawke noted.
He urged the youth to avoid this risk by adopting a healthy lifestyle such as avoiding alcohol and tobacco, eating a balanced diet and maintaining a healthy weight.
