There is an increase in cases of breast, colorectal and liver cancer in younger people, and obesity and excessive consumption of alcohol and red meat are identified as causes of this problem.
“Cancers are increasing in younger peoplebut our main concern is the increase in breast cancer in women in their 30s and 40s, and colon and large intestine cancer also in people in their 40s”, warned the specialist Rui Tato Marinhoin an interview with the Lusa agency.
According to the gastroenterologist, liver cancer has also shown an increase among the younger population, which leads to a call for early screening.
Currently, it is recommended that Portuguese people aged 50 or over undergo colorectal cancer screening (fecal occult blood test or colonoscopy), but experts are beginning to recommend that it be carried out at 45 yearssaid Tato Marinho.
The specialist points to several explanations for the increase in this cancer at younger ages, such as obesity: “a very serious public health problem”.
“Despite several campaigns, the population is increasingly obese,” she said, warning that obesity “increases the risk of cancer not only of the colon, liver, but also of the breast.”
O excessive alcohol consumption and a diet rich in red meat have also been identified as risk factors.
“We are one of the countries in the world where the most alcohol is consumed per head and start consuming too early. This is also a risk factor for breast and colon cancer”, warned the clinical director of the Santa Maria Local Health Unit, in Lisbon.
“A young person who is overweight, who smokes, drinks, will live 20 or 30 years lessbecause the risk of having lung, liver or colon cancer is higher”, he explained.
Oncological diseases are the second cause of mortality in Portugalwhere more than 7,000 cases of colorectal cancer are detected each year, registering a mortality rate higher than the EU averagearound 9,000 new cases of breast cancer and around 1,400 new cases of liver cancer.
