There are rising cases of breast, colorectal and other cancers in people in their 20s, 30s and 40s. What is going on?

Over the past 10 years, rates of colorectal cancer among 25 to 49 year olds have increased in 24 different countries, including the UK, US, France, Australia, Canada, Norway and Argentina.

The investigation’s early findings, presented by an international team at the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) congress in Geneva in September 2024, were as eye-catching as they are concerning.

The researchers, from the American Cancer Society (ACS) and the World Health Organization’s (WHO’s) International Agency for Research on Cancer, surveyed data from 50 countries to understand the trend. In 14 of these countries, the rising trend was only seen in younger adults, with older adult rates remaining stable.

Based on epidemiological investigations, it seems that this trend first began in the 1990s. One study found that the global incidence of early-onset cancer had increased by 79% between 1990 and 2019, with the number of cancer-related deaths in younger people rising by 29%. Another report in The Lancet Public Health described how cancer incidence rates in the US have steadily risen between the generations across 17 different cancers, particularly in Generation Xers and Millennials.

  • leisesprecher@feddit.orgEnglish
    0·
    3 months ago

    It’s not just capitalism. I’m from east Germany and you wouldn’t believe how much crap was buried, fumed into the air or pumped into the water in the name of peace and socialism.

    Don’t forget, Chernobyl happened because of a cost saving measure.

    BTW, you forgot alcohol, tobacco, vapes, stress and enforced sedentary lifestyle in your cancer list.

    • WoahWoah@lemmy.worldEnglish
      0·
      3 months ago

      Younger generations drink less and use less tobacco than basically any other generation, so that’s probably not it.

      I don’t know what you mean by “enforced sedentary lifestyle,” but young people tend to do activities that don’t involve exercise in their free time: computer use, phone use, video games, etc.

      I think the fact that obesity is up something like 20% since the 90s is probably related. Young people exercise less and eat like shit, which seems pretty related to rectal/colon cancers.

      • leisesprecher@feddit.orgEnglish
        0·
        3 months ago

        I don’t know what you mean by “enforced sedentary lifestyle,”

        Skill issue, I’d argue. May I introduce you to the concept of “working in an office”?

    • EatATaco@lemm.eeEnglish
      0·
      3 months ago

      We’re on Lemmy, every evil in the world is the result of capitalism.

    • technocrit@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
      0·
      3 months ago

      in the name of peace and socialism.

      That was the false justification because the actual reason was capitalism.

      Don’t forget, Chernobyl happened because of a cost saving measure.

      Cutting costs to make a profit is capitalism - especially when the “externality” is a catastrophe for other people.

      • EatATaco@lemm.eeEnglish
        0·
        3 months ago

        Cutting costs to make a profit is capitalism

        And socialism and communism are also dealing with limited resources and thus cutting cost is also something that will come up. It’s not like communism unlocks unlimited resources.