Doctors around the world are sounding the alarm: there is an increase in young patients being diagnosed with cancers commonly associated with the elderly. The most recent confirmation of the increase in cancers in the under 50s comes from a study published in Bmj Oncology. Between 1990 and 2019, cancer cases in young patients increased by 79 percent and deaths by 28 percent. In 2030, diagnoses predicted by the study projects will increase by 31 percent and deaths by 21 percent. In all, the research identified 3.26 million cases of early-onset cancer in 2019 (resulting in an 80 percent increase in diagnoses compared to 1990).
In particular, in the United States, colorectal cancers in under 50s have almost doubled (in absolute numbers) with figures that already constitute a public health problem. Remaining in our country, from the report “Cancer numbers in Italy 2023” it emerges that colorectal cancer represents the third neoplasm in men. And again, as part of the national campaign “They are not all the same” it is recalled that in Italy, in the space of ten years, cases of breast cancer have increased by 16 percent: they were 48 thousand in 2013 and 55,900 in 2023.
Lifestyle and cancer risk
Why is there a worrying increase in youth cancers? “The answer is not one – explains Giuliano Aureliano Stingi, PhD in molecular biology, to Today.it -, since there are numerous factors to consider: from the improvement of oncological screening (which allows more cases to be identified) to environmental factors such as pollution of land, air and water, as well as certain lifestyles (overweight and obesity, an unbalanced diet, the habit of smoking, poor physical activity, a sedentary lifestyle)”. Of course, to date there is no data that can directly relate these hypotheses to the actual increase in cancers. But the alert remains high.
Among the main defendants, therefore, there are a series of bad habits. “Certainly prevention is fundamental – continues Stingi – but it is essential to do research to understand how the various factors can combine”. Fotios Loupakis, medical oncologist and president of the Kiss against cancer association, intervenes on this aspect and explains to Today.it: “Above all, they are those people who today are 45-50 years old, and who already in adolescence – and then progressively – would have lived differently from previous generations, eating ultra-processed foods (for example, cured meats) or foods loaded with added sugars (primarily carbonated drinks) and leading a more sedentary lifestyle”.
Face the colonoscopy without fear
Despite the scale of the problem (“which, I repeat, is growing. It is an undisputed increase in terms of numbers, not a reduced phenomenon”, points out Loupakis) there are still significant barriers related to colorectal cancer screening . We are talking about an important diagnostic test, aimed at identifying any polyps or adenomas – responsible for bleeding – before they can degenerate into tumors, or tumor forms in an early stage.
“In fact, starting from 40-45 years of age, colonoscopy could be a gift to give yourself. And, in the event of a negative result, the test may not be repeated”, continues the medical oncologist. He concludes: “I myself, who recently turned 45, gave it to myself for my birthday. Today science is doing everything it can to implement alternative and non-invasive techniques, but too many taboos still remain. So fear and stigmas slow down screening”.
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