Cancer is still one of the biggest health problems in the world. Every year, millions of people are diagnosed with cancer, and many lose their lives to it.
Scientists have known for a long time that some habits, like smoking or staying in the sun too long, can increase the risk of cancer.
But it has been hard to say exactly how much these habits affect a person’s chance of getting cancer compared to just getting older or bad luck.
Now, researchers at Yale University have made a big discovery. They looked at the DNA changes that cause 24 different types of cancer to grow. These changes, called mutations, are like spelling mistakes in the body’s instruction manual.
Some mutations happen when we’re exposed to harmful things like UV rays from the sun or chemicals in cigarettes. Others happen as we age, and some seem to happen randomly for no clear reason.
What makes this study special is that the scientists found a way to measure how much each mutation adds to the growth of a tumor. This means they could figure out how much of a person’s cancer was caused by things they could have avoided, like smoking, and how much was caused by aging or random chance.
The results were eye-opening. Cancers like bladder and skin cancer were often caused by preventable things. On the other hand, cancers like prostate cancer or gliomas (a kind of brain cancer) were mostly linked to aging and things we can’t control.
This research is important because it could help health experts find better ways to prevent cancer. If we know that certain jobs or lifestyles expose people to dangerous substances, we can take steps to protect them. This might mean new safety rules at work or stronger health warnings about smoking or tanning.
The Yale study also moves us closer to personalized cancer prevention. Right now, a lot of health advice is the same for everyone. But this research shows that different cancers have different causes. That means we might one day be able to give people cancer prevention tips that match their personal risk.
However, scientists still have a lot to learn. The study didn’t look at every kind of genetic change. For example, it didn’t fully explore what happens when large parts of a person’s DNA are copied or changed. So, more research is needed to get the full picture.
Even so, this work from Yale is a big step forward. It shows us that while we can’t control everything, we can make choices that lower our risk of getting cancer. And if doctors and health officials use this information well, it could help prevent cancer in many people before it starts.
If you care about cancer, please read studies about common drugs for inflammation may help kill cancer, and statin drugs can starve cancer cells to death.
For more information about cancer, please see recent studies about these two things are key to surviving cancer and results showing common Indian fruit may slow down cancer growth.
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