Nearly everyone who receives a life-changing diagnosis asks if there was anything they could have done to prevent it. National Cancer Prevention Month tackles that question during February.
According to the National Institutes of Health, nearly 1.9 million people are diagnosed with cancer each year in the United States. Nearly half of those diagnoses are breast, prostate, lung, pancreas, or colon cancers. And yet, more than 40 percent of all cancer diagnoses can be linked to a preventable cause – nearly half.
National Cancer Prevention Month focuses on the things we can control to lessen our odds of developing cancer. Five of the top recommendations for lessening our risk include:
- Regular exercise
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Eating healthy foods
- Quitting or never starting smoking
- Limiting alcohol use
Other actions that help to prevent cancer or catch it early include routine checkups, treating or preventing other health conditions, and knowing your risk factors. We can’t stop every form of cancer yet, but we do have the tools to decrease our risk factors.
More….
- National Donor Day
- Breast Cancer Awareness Month
- Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day
- National Mammography Day
- Kick Butts Day
- World Health Day
- Lung Cancer Awareness Month
- Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
- World No-Tobacco Day
HOW TO OBSERVE #CancerPreventionMonth
Take prevention seriously in February and learn more about lessening your risk factors. We can’t do anything about hereditary risks, but there are many steps we can do to better our odds of avoiding a cancer diagnosis. Other ways to participate include:
- Support research into preventative measures.
- Encourage your loved ones to join you on a journey of prevention.
- Speak to your doctor about your risk factors.
Use #CancerPreventionMonth to join the conversation.
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