So what can you do? According to numerous professional health organizations, there are certain risk factors that play a role in the occurrence of cancer. Some of these risks are beyond our control. Others, however, are very much in our realm of control.

What are the risk factors I can control?

For example, there is an abundance of research that shows that many healthy life-style decisions are preventative against cancer. These include:

• physical activity
• maintaining a healthy weight
• eating lots of fruits and vegetables
• avoiding food high in fat
• reducing the amount of red meat
• not smoking

Nearly all of these factors have been proven to reduce the risk of many different cancers. Not smoking is probably the most important factor that can reduce the risk of cancer. According to a 1996 Cancer Causes & Control study conducted by the Harvard Report on Cancer Prevention, tobacco and adult diet/obesity were causes that each accounted for 30% of total cancer deaths. That’s and estimated 60% of cancer deaths attributed to things in our control!

What are risk factors that I can’t control?

• Age is a risk factor that we cannot control. Individuals over the age of 55 are the highest at risk for developing some form of cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, 77% of all cases are in people over the age of 55.
• Heredity is also responsible for the occurrence of cancer in some individuals. Because cancer is formed because of damaged DNA, it is possible that that DNA can be transported through family history (genetics).
• Sex and race are also other factors that can make a person more susceptible to certain cancers.