Crazy Sexy Cancer

Watched an insightful movie this morning (yes – a movie in class!) about a young woman living with a rare, slow-growing metastatic cancer. This movie comes highly recommended for a real, in-your-face perspective on how having cancer can change your life.

Watch the trailer:

The Cancer Menu

As we storm through our whirlwind week on cancer, it’s interesting to consider which cancers you are most likely to get. Please don’t become paranoid, however – this is an exercise in epidemiology, and not doom-and-gloom:

Women are most likely to get:

1. Breast cancer
2. Lung cancer
3. Colorectal cancer

Men are most likely to get:

1. Prostate cancer
2. Lung cancer
3. Colorectal cancer

Note that for both men and women, lung cancer is far more deadly than either breast cancer or prostate cancer. So for both sexes, the cancer you are most likely to die from is lung cancer. That being said, if you are a non-smoker and are able to minimize your environmental exposures (second-hand smoke, asbestos, radon, etc.), your lifetime risk for lung cancer is far lower than these lists might suggest.

Prevent Cancer with Good Health

Not long ago I posted the Five Top Steps to Good Health.

As an interesting follow-up, here’s what the Canadian Cancer Society had to recommend for their  seven steps to prevent cancer (in red are those that were included in the Five Top Steps):

1. Be a non-smoker and avoid second-hand smoke
2. Eat 5-10 servings of fruit and vegetables each day. Choose high fibre, lower fat foods. If you drink alcohol, limit your intake to 1-2 drinks a day.
3. Be physically active on a regular basis.
4. Protect yourself and your family from the sun.
5. Get yourself screened for common cancers.
6. Visit your doctor or dentist if you notice any change in your normal state of health.
7. Follow instructions when using, storing, and disposing of hazardous materials.

Here’s where you can find the CCS’s Recommendations.