Nearly half of cancers could be avoided by cutting out three major risk factors, a new study has revealed.

Research published this week in Nature Medicine identified that nearly 40% of global cancer cases are linked to tobacco (15% of new cases), infections (10%) and alcohol consumption (3%).

Overall, 7.1 million cancer diagnoses in 2022 were linked to 30 modifiable risk factors, according to the study.

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“The key here is that almost half of all cancers could be prevented by behavioral changes,” Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News Digital senior medical analyst, told Fox News Digital.

Conducted by the World Health Organization and its International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the study analyzed global cancer data across 185 countries, matching it with exposure data for the 30 risk factors.

Lung, stomach and cervical cancers accounted for nearly half of the cases that were linked to modifiable risks, with many linked to viruses and bacteria like the human papillomavirus (HPV), hepatitis B and C, and Helicobacter pylori (a common bacterium that infects the stomach lining).

“Preventable cancers of the cervix and throat are directly linked to the HPV virus and can be prevented by the HPV vaccine,” added Siegel, who was not involved in the study.

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Lung cancer, throat and GI cancers, and several others were linked to cigarette smoking, and alcohol was associated with breast, liver, colon and throat cancer, the doctor noted.

“Environmental factors are also key, varying by geography — 45% of new cancers could be prevented in men, and 30% in women,” he said.

Study author Hanna Fink, from the Cancer Surveillance Branch at IARC/WHO, said the main message is that many cancers can be prevented.

“Almost four in 10 new cancer cases worldwide, which represent 7.1 million lives that don’t need to be changed by a cancer diagnosis, were linked to things we can change or modify through awareness and public-health action,” she told Fox News Digital.

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“These things include tobacco smoking, infections, alcohol consumption, excess body weight, air pollution, ultraviolet radiation and others.”

Looking ahead, the researchers recommend that stronger prevention strategies targeting tobacco use, infections, unhealthy body weight and alcohol use could substantially reduce global cancer cases.

“The key here is that almost half of all cancers could be prevented by behavioral changes.”

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“The study reinforces that cancer prevention works, and action is most effective at the population level,” Fink said. 

“Governments and communities play a crucial role by making healthy choices easier, for example, through higher tobacco and alcohol taxes, smoke-free policies, clear health warnings, safer workplaces, cleaner air, and affordable access to vaccination and screening. Individuals can support these by advocating for healthier environments and using available preventive services.”

Reducing the risk

The AIRC offers the following recommendations to minimize cancer risk.

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• Do not smoke, and if you do smoke, seek help to quit.
• Keep alcohol intake as low as possible, as “there is no safe level of alcohol for cancer risk.”
• Aim for a healthy body weight over time with a balanced diet and regular physical activity.
• Move more and sit less, as even small amounts of daily movement help.
• Take advantage of vaccines, especially the HPV vaccination for young people and the hepatitis B vaccination.

“As a family physician, I try to help my patients understand how important their daily habits are in lowering their future cancer risk,” said Dr. Chris Scuderi, a cancer survivor and Florida-based family physician.

The doctor’s key prevention targets include daily exercise, consistent and restorative sleep, a Mediterranean-style diet, regular doctor’s visits and sufficient rest.

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“Small daily wins add up to make a powerful difference over time,” added Scuderi, who also was not involved in the research. “It’s also essential to stay on top of your routine screenings, which your family physician can help you with.”

Potential limitations

The study did have some limitations. The researchers often used data from around 2012 due to the long delay between exposure and cancer, which means the data may not reflect the most recent behaviors or environments.

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“This is a necessary simplification, because in reality, latency can be longer or shorter depending on the cancer and the exposure,” Fink noted.

Siegel pointed out that cancer types vary by geographic region — for example, stomach cancer is more prominent in Asia — and the relationships between risk factors and cancer prevalence can differ between countries, populations and time periods.

“We rely on the best available data on how common each risk factor is in different countries and how strongly it is linked to cancer, but these data are not perfect and are weaker in some low- and middle-income countries,” Fink said.

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Finally, the study only looked at 30 risk factors with the strongest evidence and global data.

“Our estimate of ‘almost 40% of cancers are preventable’ is very likely conservative,” the researcher added. “Some other suspected causes, such as certain aspects of diet, could not be included because the science or the data are not yet robust enough at a global level.” 

A newborn baby in New Mexico died from a Listeria infection likely tied to the mother drinking raw milk while pregnant, according to state health officials.

The New Mexico Department of Health issued a warning Tuesday urging people to avoid consuming raw dairy products following the newborn’s death. Health officials believe the “most likely” source of infection was the mother drinking unpasteurized milk during pregnancy.

While investigators said they could not determine the exact cause, they said the “tragic death underscores the serious risks raw dairy poses to pregnant women, young children, elderly New Mexicans and anyone with a weakened immune system.”

Raw milk has seen a surge in popularity amid the Make America Healthy Again movement led by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a regulation decades ago prohibiting the interstate sale of raw milk, but the drink is not federally banned, leaving individual states to decide whether it’s safe for human consumption.

“Individuals who are pregnant should only consume pasteurized milk products to help prevent illnesses and deaths in newborns,” Dr. Chad Smelser, deputy state epidemiologist for the New Mexico Department of Health said in a statement.

Raw milk has not been pasteurized — a process that heats milk to remove disease-causing germs.

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Consuming food or beverages made from raw milk can expose people to Campylobacter, Cryptosporidium, E. coli, Listeria, Brucella and Salmonella, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Listeria is the third leading cause of death from foodborne illness in the U.S., infecting about 1,250 people and causing roughly 172 deaths each year, according to the CDC.

The CDC notes that certain groups of people, including children under the age of 5, adults over 65, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems, have a higher risk of serious illness.

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“New Mexico’s dairy producers work hard to provide safe, wholesome products and pasteurization is a vital part of that process,” Jeff M. Witte, New Mexico secretary of agriculture, said in a statement. “Consumers, particularly those at higher risk, are encouraged to choose pasteurized dairy products to reduce the risk of serious foodborne illness.”

Last August, an outbreak of E. coli and Campylobacter linked to raw milk from a Florida farm sickened 21 people, including six children.

As marijuana’s potential health benefits are under debate, new research has found that THC could have a powerful and positive effect on the brain.

Researchers at the University of Texas (UT) at San Antonio, Long School of Medicine, recently discovered that THC (tetrahydrocannabinol, the main psychoactive compound in marijuana) could prevent the development of Alzheimer’s disease – but only when paired with an anti-inflammatory drug called celecoxib.

Celecoxib is a selective COX-2 inhibitor that is commonly prescribed for arthritis and pain.

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While THC has previously been shown to have anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective properties, it’s also been linked to negative effects on the brain, particularly in learning and memory, according to a UT Health press release.

Combining THC with an anti-inflammatory drug, however, could provide the same benefits with fewer negative side effects.

The study, which was published in the journal Aging and Disease, paired low-dose THC extract with celecoxib, which was administered to mice daily for 30 days.

The mice received the treatments before the development of memory symptoms to measure the impact on preventing or delaying Alzheimer’s.

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The results showed improved cognition, learning and memory, as well as decreased markers of neuroinflammation and reduced Alzheimer’s-related brain pathology, the release stated.

Although THC alone had the same results, it also increased inflammatory signals, while the combination dosage did not.

“What really mattered was behavior. If cognition is not improved, then the treatment doesn’t matter. And that’s where the combination clearly worked better than THC alone,” noted lead study author Chu Chen, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Cellular and Integrative Physiology.

Years of research led Chen to connect the dots on how THC can manipulate the brain and why it’s difficult to use safely for neurological conditions, according to UT Health.

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“When THC is given, it unexpectedly increases COX-2 in the brain. That increase is closely associated with learning and memory impairment,” Chen said.

Both THC and celecoxib are FDA-approved for use in humans, which could provide a “real advantage” in moving along to clinical trials, according to UT Health.

“What really mattered was behavior. If cognition is not improved, then the treatment doesn’t matter.”

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Future studies will investigate whether the drug combination can slow disease progression or reverse deficits after symptoms have appeared.

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“This work has taken many years. But now we’re at a point where basic neuroscience discoveries are pointing toward something that could realistically move into the clinic,” Chen said.

Dr. Paul Saphier, a neurosurgeon and founder of Coaxial Neurosurgical Specialists in New Jersey, called this research an “exciting breakthrough with a huge potential impact for patients and their families.”

“Neurocognitive deterioration has been linked to conditions that cause inflammation within the brain — prior brain bleeds, strokes, tumors and infections,” he told Fox News Digital. “We also know that the buildup of the plaques related to Alzheimer’s [beta-amyloid plaques] are the result of chronic inflammation.”

“So, it makes sense that this combination therapy [might] help limit the production of this amyloid and thereby reduce the progression of the disease.”

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Saphier said the drugs’ FDA approval status is “encouraging,” as it may “ultimately ease the availability for patients, if the trial proves successful.”

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“I look forward to the results of this trial, as well as any future trials that look at limiting the effects of chronic inflammation within the central nervous system.”