Poor lifestyle choices causes a surge in cancer rates

There are fresh concerns that poor choices in lifestyle may be attributed to a large increase in the number of certain cancers following the publication of data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The number of cases of malignant melanoma, an aggressive form of skin cancer, has seen the biggest rise, shooting up by 56% amongst men and 38% for women between the years 2002 and 2011.

Melanoma is relatively rare, but has become more prominent in recent times because of the surge in people using sunbeds. The cancer is caused due to cells beginning to abnormally develop in the skin and health experts believe it is exposure to UV light from natural or artificial sources such as a sunbed could be responsible. It starts within the skin and may spread to organs in the body. A usual sign of this cancer is the change of an existing mole of the sudden appearance of a new one.

Health experts at the ONS believe the rise in melanoma cases could be due to gradual changes in the nation’s fashion choices, with people more skin-revealing clothes in recent years. This together with large amounts of the population sunbathing at every rare chance of sunshine across the country and an increase in the use of sunbeds has put people at risk.

ONS statistics also show that in total, all combined new cases of cancer across England increased by a fifth between 2002 and 2011 – with 274,233 patients being diagnosed with cancer in 2011. From the 274,233, men made up 139,120 of the new diagnoses compared with 135,113 women. Both figures will no doubt be a lot more after additional hospital admissions are included in the totals.
The most prominent cancers in men are still the previous common types; prostate (25.6%), lung (13.8%) and colorectal (13.6%).

Smoking and poor diet are the main factors responsible for a surge in oral cancers, which have increased by 37%. Kidney cancer has also increased by 25% in men and 36% in women.

Both of these cancers are heavily linked to excessive alcohol consumption and tobacco usage. In fact these two factors together are believed to actually account for a staggering three-quarters of all oral cancer cases in Europe.

Nick Ormiston-Smith, statistical information manager at Cancer Research UK, spoke on how the nation’s poor lifestyle choices are being underestimated and are causing huge health problems later in life.

He said: “Forty per cent of cancers can be attributed to lifestyle factors so swapping some bad habits for healthier ones can help reduce the risk of developing the disease. Smoking increases the risk of at least 14 forms of cancer including lung, bowel, pancreatic and mouth. Cutting down on alcohol, keeping to a healthy weight, avoiding sunburn and being more active can also help reduce the risk of many cancers. Leading a healthy life doesn’t guarantee you won’t get cancer but it can stack the odds in your favour.”

After seeing the alarming ONS figures, Ciarán Devane, chief executive at Macmillan Cancer Support, said: “It is startling that the number of new cases of cancer diagnosed has soared by nearly a fifth in the last ten years. However, it is important to note that this overall figure disguises a wide variation across the cancer types. While it is welcome news that the number of new cases of ovarian and stomach cancer rates have decreased, malignant melanoma is up by a huge 66 per cent. Today’s ONS figures also reveal a worrying gender gap. Cancer affects women more in younger age groups, but men are significantly worse affected over the age of 60. The reasons for this are complex and only partially understood. Further research needs to be carried out to understand these differences better. We are warning that the rising numbers of cancer patients poses a huge challenge for the NHS as it will not be able to cope with the surge in demand unless it puts the necessary plans and resources in place now.”

Hospital blasted for proposed smoking shelter next to cancer ward

Bosses at The University of North Staffordshire hospital have caused a huge outpouring of anger after its plans to construct a smoking shelter outside a cancer ward were made public.

The hospital initially spoke of their proposed planning permission for five smoking shelters on-site in October of last year after staff, patients and visitors complained that smokers were repeatedly ignoring the rules regarding the strict no-smoking policy for directly outside the entrances to the hospital. However, further complaints were also made because of the fact that smokers would often convene in large groups on the A34, which is close by.

At the time, The hospital’s chief nurse Liz Rix said: “We want to encourage people not to smoke because of their health, but it’s become very difficult [to enforce the smoking ban].We have had so many complaints from staff, patients and visitors to the hospital about what you can see outside the grounds that we thought we had to try something different.” She also added that the hospital ‘absolutely do not condone’ smoking and would be ‘encouraging and supporting’ patients to stop smoking altogether.

If Stoke-on-Trent City Council give the go-ahead for the planning application (a decision is expected in February), then the five smoking shelters are to be erected next to two main entrances, the hospital’s maternity block, the accident and emergency unit and what has maybe caused the most fury – outside of the hospital’s cancer ward.

Cancer charities and people who have suffered with the deadly disease – commonly attributed to smoking – have now spoke out and blasted the prospect of a smoking shelter right beside a place where people are being treated for cancer, arguing it is a thoughtless and insensitive move from the hospital.

Cancer survivor Harry Larkins, 70, from Cheadle, Staffs, successfully managed to overcome cancer back in 2009 but still attends a check-up each year at the hospital. He hit out at the plans and said: “I know they have to accommodate smokers, but a lot of people in the cancer ward have smoked throughout their lives and don’t need reminding that could be the reason they are there. It’s just plain insensitive. It is a huge site and they could put them somewhere a lot more discreet. I think it’s a terrible error of judgement.”

Councillor Colin Eastwood, chairman of Newcastle Borough Council’s Health Scrutiny Committee, gave a scathing verdict of the hospital’s smoking shelters, saying: “I don’t feel the shelters are really addressing the problem of smoking. It is almost like condoning smoking. Smoking is a real issue in the local area and it concerns me that the hospital is providing for them. What they should be doing is supporting smokers who are admitted to hospital to quit the habit.”

To try and defend the plans, the chief nurse Lisa Rix commented: “We do not condone smoking on our premises by patients, visitors or staff. However, a degree of pragmatism has been adopted to keep the hospital clean and tidy and smokers away from building entrances. The beautiful main entrance has become a particular problem area with a large number of smokers congregating and at times it has been difficult to keep the area clean. We accept this has caused problems for neighbouring residential areas and are working with unions to see what actions can be taken to alleviate this. We enforce a blanket ban on staff smoking on our property and staff will not be allowed to use the shelters.”

Smoking is without doubt the most avoidable cause of many cancers and is often directly linked to throat, mouth, cervix, stomach, bowel and kidney cancer. The biggest killer though in regards to smoking-related cancers is lung cancer – responsible for over four out of every five cancer cases. Unfortunately lung cancer has one of the worst survival rates of any type of cancer but it is preventable with swift action that involves quitting smoking as soon as possible before it is too late.

Many people are able to give up smoking through the aid of the smoking cessation medication Champix, which works by replicating the effect of nicotine on the body. Therefore, it both reduces the urge to smoke and relieves withdrawal symptoms. Although you are not recommended to smoke after your quit date, Champix can also reduce the enjoyment of cigarettes if you do smoke when on treatment. It is available today from Medical Specialists Pharmacy from as little as just £75.00 per pack.