Like Kate Middleton, cancer is increasingly affecting people under the age of 50

Health – Kate Middleton’s case reveals a phenomenon on a larger scale. The Princess of Wales, 42, announced on Friday March 22 that she has cancer. However, without science really understanding, people under the age of 50 have been affected by this disease more and more frequently for several decades.

It is real “epidemic”, research cancer specialist Shivan Sivakumar of the University of Birmingham summarizes to AFP. Between 1990 and 2019, cancer rates in this age group nearly doubled (+80%) worldwide, according to a large study published in BMJ Oncology in 2023. An analysis that focuses on the thirty most prevalent cancers.

For France alone, the extent of the phenomenon is difficult to measure. As he wrote ExpressWho looked at this topic in 2023, “Official Records of the Incas (National Cancer Institute) No incidence under 40 years of age is presented because it is not possible to draw general conclusions with the limited number of cases considered by experts.

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Worrying attitude

But globally, this phenomenon, which especially affects developed countries, still leads to an increase in cancer deaths among people under the age of 50. Their numbers have increased by about 28% in three decades. Some media cases have struck a chord with the general public, such as the death of actor Chadwick Boseman at age 43. “Black Panther”Following Colorectal Cancer in 2020.

In fact, gastrointestinal cancer (which affects the colon, esophagus, liver, etc.) is experiencing a particularly significant surge in young people. According to the American Cancer Society, they are the leading cause of cancer death in men under the age of 50 and the second leading cause of death in women of the same age behind breast cancer.

And the trend shouldn’t stop there. The same study estimates that by 2030 the number of early cancer diagnoses could increase by about 30% worldwide, and the number of people who die from it could increase by about 20%.

There is no obvious culprit

So how can we explain such a phenomenon? “Currently, there is no conclusive evidence” To favor an agreement, Shivan Sivakumar continues. It is likely that several factors are involved, and researchers favor two pathways in this regard.

The first is that recent generations are more exposed to known risk factors than their predecessors. One observation supports this hypothesis: Compared to previous generations, current forty-year-olds are younger when they experience smoking, alcohol consumption, or obesity.

This last point particularly attracted the attention of Helen Coleman, an epidemiologist at Queen’s University in Belfast. The researcher, who has studied cancer specifically among young people in Northern Ireland, points out. “The Obesity Epidemic” Which did not exist before 1980.

New threats?

There is another major pathway, which focuses on the emergence of new carcinogenic risks. There are many theories (chemicals, microplastics, new drugs, etc.), but all remain speculative. Objects of intense media attention, ultra-processed foods have recently been cited as potential culprits. But, again, “There is really very little data to support this idea”Helen Coleman insists.

The popular explanation in vaccine-skeptic circles, however, can be formally debunked: that anti-Covid vaccination has nothing to do with the rise in cancer among young people, a phenomenon that began well before the pandemic.

Without knowing the root causes of the rising number of cancers in people under 50, it is difficult to know how to stop it. In this regard, for some health authorities, screening is a crucial tool: the United States has therefore lowered to 45 in 2021 the age at which screening for colorectal cancer is recommended. In France, the minimum age is set at 50 years, but some gastroenterologists advocate lowering it.

More generally, researchers interviewed by AFP hope the Princess of Wales’ case will draw young people’s attention to the fact that cancer doesn’t just affect the elderly. And if in doubt about a feature, it is better to consult.

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