Study: Half of cancer preventable in Japan

A new study by Japanese researchers shows that about half of cancer patients in Japan have developed the disease due to preventable causes.

A team at the National Cancer Center used data of patients diagnosed with cancer in 2005 to statistically analyze cancer causes in Japan.

They checked the data against statistics of people with preventable risk factors for cancer, such as smoking and drinking habits or viral infections.

Their analysis showed that the largest cause of cancer for Japanese males was smoking at 29.7 percent, followed by infection with the Helicobacter Pylori bacterium or hepatitis and other viruses at 22.8 percent, and alcoholism at 9 percent.

For female patients, infections topped the list at 17.5 percent, followed by smoking at 5 percent and drinking at 2.5 percent.

The study shows that about half of cancer cases in Japan were caused by preventable factors, indicating that cancer can be reduced by improving lifestyles and the environment.

The study also showed that only 0.8 percent of male patients and 1.6 percent of female patients developed cancer due to obesity. The figures are about one-third of those in the United States.

Shoichiro Tsugane, who heads the institution's Epidemiology and Prevention Division, points out that the research is a statistical analysis of the entire cancer population of Japan. He said he hopes people with preventable risk factors will make efforts to reduce them.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011 14:51 +0900 (JST)