
In recent decades, the number of cancer patients has greatly increased and continues to grow - in the future, oncology may become the main cause of death worldwide. What is it connected with?
Cancer is not a new disease. People have been suffering from cancer since the beginning of their existence, the most ancient tumor was discovered in a human ancestor who lived about two million years ago. But it is still clear that ancient people rarely got cancer, this disease was not common even in the Middle Ages. And now, according to experts, the risk of encountering cancer during one's lifetime is 50%.
Scientists urge not to panic - the increase in the number of cancer cases has an explanation. First of all, there have simply been a lot more people in the last few centuries. Medicine also contributed - now people live longer, and one of the main causes of cancer is accumulated mutations. In addition, cancer began to be diagnosed more often - people with cancer often died of other causes before they found out about their disease.
Cancer is still more characteristic of people after the age of 45, the peak incidence falls on the age of about 60 years. A few centuries ago, in principle, few people lived to such an age, therefore, people encountered cancer less often. There were many diseases that killed faster than cancer.
Other conditions also play a role - poor ecology, lack of physical activity, bad habits, poor nutrition. Yes, the number of lung cancer cases has been falling since the 90s because most people quit smoking.