Young People More Likely to Get Cancer: Study
A worrying trend has emerged: young people worldwide are increasingly diagnosed with cancer. Researchers have identified specific types of tumors that are affecting younger generations more frequently than ever before.
Cancer was once considered a disease of old age, but this perception is changing. A large-scale study in the USA revealed that millennials (born between 1981 and 1996) are two to three times more likely to develop certain types of cancer than the baby boomer generation.
The study analyzed the medical records of 23.6 million US citizens aged 25 to 84, diagnosed with cancer between 2000 and 2019. The results were alarming: in 17 out of the 34 types of cancer studied, the incidence rate increased with each successive generation.
Certain types of cancer that were previously primarily diagnosed in older adults are now increasingly affecting younger people. These include:
Liver cancer
Breast cancer
Colon cancer
Bladder cancer
* Ovarian cancer
The researchers suggest several possible explanations for this alarming trend. The increasing prevalence of obesity and unhealthy lifestyles in younger generations could be contributing factors. Notably, 10 out of the 17 cancer types with increasing frequency in younger generations are associated with overweight and obesity.
While the exact causes remain unknown, researchers emphasize the need for further research to understand the underlying factors and predict future trends.