2023-09-08 07:14:14
by Vera Martinella
Increasing one kilogram per year between the ages of 17 and 29 increases the probability of having an aggressive carcinoma by 13% and that of a lethal form by 27%. Cancer cases among young people are on the rise
Several studies in recent days have raised the same alarm: cases of cancer among young people have been growing for years and the trend does not seem to be slowing down. The latest surge, over the last three decades, has been recorded among the under 50s by a global survey just published on rivista scientifica British Medical Journal Oncology, according to which cancers have increased overall by 79% from 1990 to 2019. Above all, incorrect lifestyles are blamed: smoking, alcohol consumption and poor nutrition, which often leads to being overweight, are too widespread and contribute significantly to the formation of various neoplasms. Another worrying piece of news also comes into this context: gaining weight during adolescence and over the course of the 20s increases the chances not only of getting prostate cancer, but also of developing a more aggressive and lethal form.
The Swedish study
This is the result of another study, presented during the last European Congress on Obesity in Dublin Scandinavian researchers, after analyzing data relating to over 258 thousand Swedish males aged between 17 and 60 followed on average for 40 years. 23,348 cases of prostate cancer were recorded, on average in men in their 70s, but the survey also highlighted a link between weight gain before the age of 30 and cancer. In particular, a boy who puts on a kilo of fat a year between the ages of 17 and 29 sees his chances of having aggressive prostate cancer rise by 13% and those of a lethal form by 27%. There is no longer any doubt: excessive weight not only increases the chances of getting sick, but also of dying from cancer – says Sergio Bracarda, national president of the Italian Society of Uro-Oncology (SIUrO) -. Based on the results of various research, 13 different types of cancer have been attributed to extra pounds, in particular those of the endometrium, liver, breast, prostate and colorectal. Those who are obese risk developing more aggressive and difficult to treat forms, just as they are more likely to have a recurrence of a previous tumor or encounter complications during treatment.
Who risks more
With over 40 thousand new cases every year, prostate cancer is the most frequent type of cancer in men over the age of 50, but the numbers are also increasing among younger people. The good news is that, if identified in the initial phase, today over 90% of patients manage to recover or live with the disease for decades. Prostate cancer is a good tumor, which evolves slowly and is often non-aggressive, so much so that it can only be kept under control for many years. Even for those patients who have an advanced-stage disease, various effective treatments are now available, depending on the case, to slow down the neoplasm and allow patients to live well for a long time. Eating lifestyles are fundamental both before and after a diagnosis of prostatic neoplasia – adds Bracarda, who is also director of the Oncology Department at the Santa Maria Hospital in Terni -. Several studies have already highlighted the role, in the onset of cancer, of a diet particularly rich in saturated fats and excessive consumption of red meat and dairy products. Among the known causes that increase the chances of getting prostate cancer are a high protein content in the diet and metabolic syndrome, a pathology characterized by increased abdominal circumference, arterial hypertension, hypertriglyceridemia, reduced levels of good cholesterol HDL and increased fasting blood sugar.
The links between fat and cancer
At the moment there are mainly five areas in which we are investigating to understand the cause-effect relationships between obesity and tumors: insulin, chronic inflammation, estrogens, tumor growth factors and adipokines (substances produced by adipose tissue that have a pro- inflammatory). What is particularly under attack is the type of body distribution of fat, in addition to its absolute quantity: visceral and abdominal fat, located deep around the central organs of the body (such as the intestine, heart, liver) and therefore not palpable, much more dangerous subcutaneous fat that accumulates on the surface, between the skin and muscles. One man in eight in Italy will have to deal with a diagnosis of prostate cancer, cases of which in our country have been increasing for years – concludes Bracarda –. On the one hand, because the number of elderly people is growing and this neoplasm (like all tumors, after all) in the vast majority of cases affects men over 65. On the other hand, because incorrect lifestyles are increasingly widespread. Finally, it must be considered that by undergoing regular checks, especially with the Psa test, a greater number of men discover the presence of a less aggressive tumor, in its early stages, before it causes symptoms.
September 8, 2023 (modified September 8, 2023 | 07:13)
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