fixaging

Cancer and aging are inextricably linked together. After the age of 25 the risk of getting cancer doubles for every 5 years of life. 77% of all cancers are diagnosed in people 55 years and older. Some cancers, such as Wilms’ tumour, retinoblastoma, and neuroblastoma do occur almost exclusively in children. So the number one factor in cancer is age. Here is a brief run down of the other factors as well as the varieties of cancer.

Other factors involved in cancer:

• Environmental - There are numerous environmental factors which can increase the risk of getting cancer. Certain pollution such as industrial waster or cigarette smoke and increase the risk. Also some chemicals such as asbestos may cause lung cancer and mesothelioma. There can be a significant time lag between the exposure of the chemical and the cancer appearing. Another risk factor to cancer is the exposure to radiation, this includes radiation exposure from the sun in the form of ultraviolet radiation.
• Diet – diet can effect the risk of cancer. For example a diet which is high in fat has been linked to increased risk of breast and colon cancer. While people who drink excessive quantities of alcohol are much more likely to get oesophageal cancer.
• Viral infections - several viruses can cause cancer, such as papillomavirus which causes cervical cancer in women, and hepatitis B virus which can cause liver cancer.
• Inflammatory diseases – disease such as ulcerative colitis may cause colon cancer.

There are three distinct varieties of cancer:

• Leukaemia’s and lymphomas – these are cancers of the blood and blood-forming tissue.
• Carcinomas – these are cancers of the epithelial cells ( the cells covering the surface of the body and making up glands and producing hormones).
• Sarcomas – are cancers of the mesodermal cells, which are cells forming muscles and connective tissue. These tend to form in younger rather than older people.

Tags: Cancer by Matias
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Over the years conflicting advice has been given concerning whether people should expose themselves to sunshine, with some advocating staying out of the sun completely, to others saying that using sun block causes cancer so they do not use it. However recently Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy has found evidence that increased risk of melanoma cancer from the sun is outweighed by the reduced risk of internal cancers as a result of increased vitamin D production.

This was identified by comparing incidence and survival rates of some cancers by latitude. For example, people residing in Australia close to the equator produced 3.4 times more vitamin D due to sun exposure than people living in the UK and even more than that with the people in Scandinavia. The author of this study advocates using a sun block which only filters out UVA, however UVA can cause sunburn and skin aging, so this does not sound like the optimal solution. Instead it may be best to supplement with vitamin D and use sunscreen or reduce exposure to the sun. When shopping for a sunscreen it is important to note that SPF (sun protection factor) is a measurement of a products ability to stop someone from getting a sunburn, not its ability to stop cancer, so even with even with a high SPF cream on there will be an increased risk of getting cancer.

I found this useful piece of information via futurepundit

As a final point I would like to mention that life is not just about living the longest you possibly can, it is about living the longest you possibly can with the best quality of life, even with sun exposure you are unlikely to die of skin cancer.

Tags: Cancer by Matias
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