Table 1.
Risk factors for cancer that are also leading causes of disease burden globally or regionally and are potentially modifiable (adapted from Ezzati et al., 2006).
| Risk factor | Minimum‐risk exposure | Cancer | Other major diseases |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smoking | No smoking | Cancer of the lung, upper aero‐digestive tract; liver; pancreas; cervix uteri; bladder; kidney; and leukaemia | IHD; stroke; COPD and other respiratory diseases |
| Alcohol | No use | Cancer of the upper aero‐digestive tract; liver, and breast | IDH; stroke; diabetes; cirrhosis |
| Overweight and obesity | BMI = 21SD 1 kg/m2 | Cancer of the colon; gallbladder; breast (post‐menopausal); endometrium; and kidney | IHD; stroke; diabetes; osteo‐arthritis |
| Physical inactivity | ≥2.5 h/wk | Cancer of the colon ‐rectum; breast; and prostate | IHD; diabetes; osteoporosis; osteoarthritis |
| Low fruit and vegetable intake | 600 gr/daySD 50 g | Cancer of the upper aero‐digestive tract; stomach; colon; and lung | IHD; stroke |
| Urban air pollution | 7.5 μg/m3 for PM2.51.5 μg/m3 for PM10 | Cancer of the lung | Mortality from respiratory and cardiovascular diseases |
| Indoor smoke from solid fuels | No solid fuel use | Cancer of the lung | COPD, respiratory infections in children |
| Unsafe sex | No unsafe sex | Cancer of the cervix, other anogenital tract, and oropharynx | HIV/AIDS; sexually‐transmitted diseases |
| Contaminated injections in health care setting | No contaminated injections | Liver cancer; non‐Hodgkin lymphoma | Infection with HBV; HCV; HIV, cirrhosis, |
BMI = body mass index; COPD: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease; HBV: hepatitis B virus; HCV: hepatitis C virus; HIV: human immunodeficiency virus; IDH: ischemic heart disease; SD: standard deviation.