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Worldwide, there were 4.45 million cancer deaths due to avoidable risk factors, such as smoking, alcohol and excessive weight in 2019. This number represents almost half of the cancer deaths recorded in the same year. This is one of the data that emerged from a new international study published in The Lancet. The research saw the active participation of over 1000 researchers around the world as part of the GBD 2019 Cancer Risk Factors Collaboration.
The results of the study
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In the course of the study, the experts analyzed the impact of 34 behavioral, metabolic, environmental and occupational risk factors on the total number of cancer deaths recorded in 2019, using data from the Global Burden of Disease Study, a research program on impact of major diseases in the world. The analysis showed that the risk factors analyzed were confirmed to be responsible for over 4.45 million deaths from cancer, or 44.4% of the total deaths from cancer recorded in 2019, with a loss of 105 million years of healthy life (the so-called DALYs).
The risk factors with the greatest impact
In particular, smoking, alcohol and high body mass index were found to be the risk factors with the greatest impact. Finally, the study found that among the deaths influenced by risk factors, more than a third are due to lung cancer.