Analysis reveals top preventable cancer causes in UK

Almost a third of new cancer cases in the UK in 2022 were preventable, caused by smoking, excess weight and exposure to ultraviolet radiation from the sun and sunbeds, according to analysis.

Experts said it is “good news” that many cancers could be avoided, and called for prevention strategies to focus on tackling risks and not blame.

For the study, experts from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and its International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) looked at 30 risk factors that cause the disease, including smoking, drinking alcohol, high body mass index, air pollution and infections.

Using data from across 185 countries they estimate that about 7.1 million of the 18.7 million new cancer cases diagnosed globally in 2022 were preventable.

UK figures shows some 32.6% of all new cancer cases – more than 148,000 – were caused by preventable factors during the period.

The top cause was tobacco smoking, which accounted for 16.2% of cases, followed by excess body fat (4.2%) and ultraviolet radiation (3.6%).

There were also slight variations among men and women in the UK.

For women, 32.2%, or more than 68,000, cancer cases were preventable.

Tobacco remained the top cause (13.8%), followed by excess body weight (5.5%) and ultraviolet radiation (3.4%)

In men, more than a third (33.1%) of new cancer cases were preventable, the equivalent of more than 80,000.

The leading causes were smoking (18.5%), alcohol consumption (4.1%) and ultraviolet radiation (3.8%)

The analysis also highlighted the parts of the body most affected by these cancers.

In UK women, there were more than 17,000 cases of lung cancer, followed by more than 12,000 cases of breast cancer caused by excess body weight, alcohol or not enough exercise, the study suggests.

Lungs

In men, the top cancer site was the lungs, with 19,000 cases, and colorectal, with more than 10,000 cases partly caused by alcohol consumption.

Dr Andre Ilbawi, WHO team lead for cancer control, said: “A cancer diagnosis is life changing, yet experiences differ sharply between and within countries.

“For a privileged few, access and innovation are driving survival rates beyond 70% but for far too many, cancer remains a death sentence, often compounded by devastating social and financial hardships.

“Today, we are here to celebrate good news founded on strong science; many cancers are preventable.”

Dr Ilbawi said the findings, published in the journal Nature Medicine, “help us understand what is driving the cancer burden and what are the highest risks for different populations”.

“Tobacco, alcohol, air pollution, unhealthy diets, physical activity and infections such as human papillomavirus and hepatitis – these continue to drive avoidable injury to the avoidable illness and death,” he added.

“These are the same risk factors that place a massive strain on communities’ systems through many other diseases beyond cancer.

“Investing in cancer prevention, therefore, delivers wide-ranging health, societal and economic benefits.

“There’s one key message to recall; prevention must be communicated carefully, focusing on risk reduction, not blame, emphasising policy and structural solutions, acknowledging uncertainty and respecting the dignity of people living with cancer.”

The 7.1 million preventable cancer cases across the globe is the equivalent of four in 10, the study found.

Cancer burden

Dr Isabelle Soerjomataram, deputy head of the IARC Cancer Surveillance Unit, said: “This represents 37.8% of the total cancer burden, a very substantial proportion.

“Breaking this down to major risk factors, smoking accounts for 3.3 million cases, infections for 2.2 million cases, and alcohol contributes for approximately 700,000 cases.

“So these three factors represent the majority of preventable global cancer burden, highlighting where prevention efforts could have the greatest impact.”

Dr Soerjomataram added that the burden of cancer “differs substantially across the world region”.

She said this “demonstrates why a one-size-fits-all global prevention strategy is not sufficient”.

“Each country and region need to adapt global and regional strategies to prevention priorities that are aligned with its specific cancer burden profile,” Dr Soerjomataram added.

Global analysis also highlighted a significant difference between men and women across the world when it came to cancer causes.

According to the study, 45% of new global cancer cases among men were linked to preventable risk factors compared with 30% among women.