Noteworth Numbers: Cancer Prevention

Cancer Prevention

According to the World Health Organization, one-third of all cancer cases are preventable.¹ When individuals choose the right health behaviors and avoid exposure to certain environmental risk factors, prevention becomes the most long-term cost-effective approach for curtailing cancer.² The following statistics examine policy factors and behavioral prevention strategies.

Tobacco Use

Approximately 30% of all deaths from cancer in the United States are a result of smoking,² and about 70% of lung cancer cases can be attributed to smoking alone.¹

A study by the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network revealed that enacting comprehensive smoke-free legislation in states without such laws could decrease deaths by more than 624,000 over the long term and save $1.32 billion in treatment costs over 5 years.³

Also, the United States could save $1.05 billion in treatment costs, generate close to $9 billion in new state government revenue over 5 years, and save 1.32 million deaths over the long term with the passage of a one-time $1 increase in cigarette excise taxes in all US states and the District of Columbia.³

Diet, Physical Activity, and Weight

One-third of the more than 500,000 cancer deaths in the US per year can be attributed to poor diet, physical inactivity, and obesity.³

To prevent cancer, individuals should achieve and maintain a healthy weight throughout life, adopt a physically active lifestyle, consume a healthy diet, and limit consumption of alcoholic beverages.³

In 2010, the Affordable Care Act created the Prevention and Public Health Fund, a source of annual funding for prevention and public health initiatives, which provided $103 million for community-based policy and environmental change initiatives dedicated to decreasing obesity, improving nutrition, and increasing physical activity through the Community Transformation Grant program.³

UV Radiation

It is estimated that approximately 76,250 cases of melanoma were diagnosed in 2012, with likely 9180 deaths.³

Behavioral strategies for the prevention of skin cancer include wearing ultraviolet (UV)-protective clothing, seeking shade when outdoors, applying sunscreen of SPF 15 or higher to exposed skin, and avoiding indoor tanning booths.³

In 2010, 60.4% of adults said that they usually or always protected themselves from the sun by practicing at least 1 of 3 sun-protective behaviors:

• 31.0% reported usually applying SPF 15 or higher sunscreen
• 19.7% reported usually wearing sun-protective clothing
• 37.2% usually sought shade2