Carcinogenic factors promoting the development of neoplasms

Our present day is packed to the brim with factors that can be considered carcinogenic. These include alcohol, excess body fat, pollution and chemical cleaners, sun exposure, birth control pills, plastic microwaveable dishes, and close contact – which can end up passing on potentially cancer-promoting viruses. But even if you could eliminate all group 1 carcinogens from your life, it would not give you a guarantee that your tumors would be bypassed by you. So does it make sense to limit yourself? The answer is yes and no.

It is important to know that not all carcinogens work the same. Eating a bacon sandwich won’t hurt you as much as smoking a cigarette. Moreover, carcinogens will not cause cancer in all cases. Their carcinogenicity levels also vary. Some of them are only at risk of cancer if they are taken in large amounts and over a long period of time. The risk of falling ill is the resultant of many factors, including genes. Putting together various potentially carcinogenic factors and treating them as if they were threatening to the same degree can confuse many a lover of a healthy lifestyle. On the other hand, if you fry in the sun for 10 years without sunscreen, smoke 15 cigarettes a day for 100 years, or quit exercising three decades ago, it is fair to say that you have put yourself at risk. But even in this situation, it is not at all certain whether you will die of cancer.

Cancer develops when cellular DNA is changed. Some of these changes will happen because of inheritance, others can be caused by environmental factors – i.e. carcinogens. Some of them do not directly alter cellular DNA and promote cancer in other ways, such as by stimulating cell division, which increases the risk of a dangerous mutation.

It is estimated that four out of ten people could avoid developing cancer by changing their lifestyle. The meaning of avoiding carcinogens comes down to lowering the risk. On the other hand, no matter how hard you try, you may belong to the group of people with a genetic predisposition to get sick. For example, you may have inherited DNA from your parents with dangerous BRCA mutations associated with breast, ovarian and prostate cancers. Then you are at a greater risk of cancer. Various lists of carcinogens have been prepared so far. Some of them will contain substances whose names mean nothing to the average reader. They may read as follows: “avoid auramine and be aware of the dangers of producing polychlorinated biphenyls?” Hmmm, what please? We’ve compiled a guide to the most obvious carcinogens you’ve likely come across. It is up to you to decide whether you will avoid them or not.

Yes, you’ve certainly been told that: it’s worth quitting smoking. In order not to be groundless, here are some convincing facts. Chemical compounds present in cigarette smoke – especially benzene, polonium-210, benzopyrene and nitrosamines – cause cancer by directly damaging DNA, inter alia the action of genes to protect us against cancer. Masterwork, cigarettes! Harmful compounds enter the bloodstream, where they are distributed throughout the body by a service pump, which is the heart. This is why smoking increases the risk of developing no fewer than 13 different cancers, including cancer of the larynx, esophagus, mouth and throat, bladder, pancreas, kidney, liver, stomach, intestine, cervix, ovary, nose and sinuses, and several types of leukemia. Undoubtedly, smoking is one of the most serious carcinogens that could be effectively eliminated. Tobacco is responsible for one in four deaths from cancer and four in five deaths from lung cancer, a cancer disease where the prognosis is sometimes the worst. The World Health Organization (WHO) predicts that if current smoking rates continue, up to a billion people will die from cigarettes in the XNUMXst century.

Maybe it will make someone feel better to say that whether you drink a lot or a little (but regularly): you increase your risk of cancer in both cases. Because if you drink alcohol, you are exposing yourself to the action of acetaldehyde that is then formed. And the best brand of alcohol will not protect you from it. It does not matter whether it is premium vodka or anything from the supermarket, because alcohol itself is the problem. Acetaldehyde causes cancer because it leads to an overgrowth of liver cells that can mutate dangerously. Alcohol also affects the level of estrogen, and its increased amount increases the risk of developing breast cancer. Not everyone who drinks will get cancer. And yet, researchers have supported the hypothesis of increased susceptibility to certain types of cancer – of the mouth, throat, esophagus, breast and bowel – in people who drink more alcohol on average than others.

Processed meat has joined the group of carcinogens recently reported news sites. The very method of preparing meat can increase its harmfulness, leading to the release of cancer-promoting compounds such as heterocyclic amines (HCA) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH). These substances are formed when meat is processed at high temperatures, especially above 149 degrees Celsius, i.e. when frying and grilling over an open fire. If the cooking time was long, the HCA fraction would be high. Smoked and burnt meat, on the other hand, will contain PAH. HCA and PAH damage DNA in the initial phase of food metabolism, which is the bioactivation process. Population studies did not show a conclusive relationship between exposure to meat-derived HCA and PAH and cancer incidence. However, some epidemiological analyzes suggest that high consumption of well-baked, fried or grilled meat is associated with an increased risk of prostate, pancreatic and rectal cancer.

There is no simple explanation as to why overweight and obesity should lead to cancer. We have reason to suspect that hormones and proteins produced in excess by adipose tissue mutagenize other cells in the body, promoting the formation of cancerous cells. Adipose tissue produces, among others estrogen and insulin. Both of these hormones are carried throughout the body with the blood. Excess body fat leads to an excess of sex hormones – estrogen and testosterone – which increases the risk of cancer. High insulin levels are found in patients suffering from many types of cancer. Abdominal obesity does even more damage and can lead to cancer of the intestines, kidneys, esophagus, pancreas, breasts and uterus. It is not known why this is so. Probably, cancer susceptibility is due to the speed at which excess hormones enter the bloodstream.

The human papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the common microbes, most often asymptomatic. It is estimated that HPV infections affect up to 80 percent. population. Most papillomaviruses pose no threat to humans, but about 13 of them can cause cancer. HPV damages the skin and the membranes that line body cavities. You can get infected with it through contact with infected skin, especially during sex. When infected, the papillomavirus causes skin cells to divide faster than usual: new cells are also infected with HPV. Almost all cervical cancer is caused by HPV, but the same virus is also responsible for numerous cancers of the vagina, vulva, penis and anus, as well as cancers of the mouth and throat. Girls aged 12–13 years are advised to have vaccinations that can protect them against the two most common types of “high risk” HPV: HPV16 and HPV18. The use of condoms is an effective method of protection against papillomas.

That’s right: that yellow ball that you eagerly drew in your childhood pictures may give you cancer someday. Exposure to UVA and UVB rays, while sunbathing in the sun and in a solarium, damages the DNA of skin cells. Solarium beds emit even more dangerous UVA and UVB radiation than the sun, and their artificially created mixture often has a stronger effect and slightly different properties than the sun’s rays. If exposure to a dangerous carcinogen lasts long enough, damaged skin cells can multiply, causing cancer to develop. The main thing is not to get burned. Sunburn shows that you have damaged the DNA of your skin cells. Simple flushing or redness is an alarming symptom – enough of a burn. Damaged skin does not need to peel off or bleed. People who experience painful sunburn every two years triple the risk of developing melanoma.