July 4, 2000. Copyright 2000. Graphic News. All rights reserved.

CAMPAIGN HIGHLIGHTS CANCER RISKS

LONDON, July 4, Graphic News: MORE than nine out of ten Britons have no idea of the risk they run of contracting cancer at some point in their lives, according to research that shows widespread complacency about BritainÕs second biggest killer.
Launching a hard-hitting campaign to raise awareness about the disease, the Imperial Cancer Research Fund said 91 percent of Britons underestimate their risk of getting cancer and more than half think the risk is less than one in 10. The actual risk is one in three, the group said.
ÒMany people do not appear to be aware of this harsh statistic, but we believe that it is important that people should know the true risk of cancer,Ó said Sir Paul Nurse, director general of the fund that conducted the study.
The survey -- conducted by pollsters NOP, who questioned a thousand people in April -- showed that only eight percent of women and seven percent of men correctly estimated the risk of cancer. Young people aged between 19 and 24 were more accurate, with 11 percent predicting a one in three risk.
The most recent records, dating from 1993, show that 109,410 men and 109,980 women are diagnosed with cancer each year in England and Wales. The numbers are 13,070 men and 13,570 women in Scotland.
ÒPeople sometimes are not aware that there are real things that they can do themselves that will help reduce this risk,Ó Nurse said. There are four priorities for people to reduce cancer risks.
1. Stop smoking: It is responsible for 90 percent of lung cancer deaths and 30 percent of all British deaths in middle age.
2. Attend screening: It cuts the risk of cervical cancer by 90 percent and is effective for breast cancer.
3. Eat fruit and vegetables: A better diet could prevent 35 percent of bowel cancer and reduce breast, prostate and lung cancers.
4. Use sun-screen: Malignant melanoma is BritainÕs fastest-growing cancer and kills 1,500 people a year.
Nurse addded that supporting research into cancer was vital and was already producing marked improvements in the treatment of some forms of the disease -- particularly testicular cancer, cervical cancer and childhood leukaemia.
ÒCancer is not one but over 200 different and very complex diseases,Ó said Nurse. ÒThatÕs why it is so difficult to understand.Ó

Sources: Imperial Cancer Research Fund, Reuters