But, she said, the institute has identified three steps people could take to dramatically affect the chances of developing cancer:
- Eat a mostly plant-based diet.
- Maintain a healthy weight.
- Exercise regularly.
"The data is pretty clear that we can make a significant drop in the cancer rate with these three changes," Collins said. "We can prevent about one-third of cancers with these changes. And if you add tobacco prevention, which reduces about 30 percent of cancers, over half of today's cancers could be prevented."
Is regular exercise a friend or foe of the aging immune system? A systematic review.
Haaland DA, Sabljic TF, Baribeau DA, Mukovozov IM, Hart LE.
Clin J Sport Med. 2008 Nov;18(6):539-48. Review.
PMID: 19001887
doi: 10.1097/JSM.0b013e3181865eec
"Cancer lies dormant in all of us," he wrote in his new book, "Anticancer: A New Way of Life" (Viking, $25.95). "But our bodies are also equipped with a number of mechanisms that detect and keep such (defective) cells in check." Cancer rears its ugly head when things get out of balance, Servan-Schreiber said in an interview. And that can happen if the bad guys that promote the growth of cancer cells (tobacco, excessive alcohol, excessive sugar, hydrogenated fats, environmental pollutants) outnumber the good guys that support our natural defenses (cancer-fighting phytochemicals found in fruits, vegetables, herbs and teas; physical activity; and stress management techniques). But conventional treatment, while indispensable, focuses on a single target: destroying cancer cells. Doctors rarely address the other side: teaching patients how to fortify themselves using nutrition, exercise and stress-management techniques to create an inhospitable environment for cancer.
European experts in cancer and nutrition are meeting in Zurich, Switzerland late this month to discuss cutting-edge research in one of the most important and fiercely debated topics in cancer prevention: the link between diet and cancer.
There is growing evidence that many cancers may be prevented through healthy lifestyle, including a nutritionally balanced diet. In addition, nutritional problems can also have a negative impact on cancer management and the lives of patients.
Other presentations will include new data on topics such as:
Childhood nutrition and later breast cancer risk
The anti-tumour effects of green tea
Malnutrition and patient distress in cancer
Possible anti-tumour effects of soy extracts in mice
Estrogens in beef and cancer risk