Duchess Kate's diagnosis comes amid an 'epidemic' of early-onset cancer

health

by tracy swartz

Duchess Kate revealed on Friday that she is battling cancer, which was discovered after recent abdominal surgery. And now oncologists are warning that certain cancers are on the rise among young adults.

“There is now an epidemic of cancer in young people (under 50s),” Dr Shivan Shivakumar, associate professor of oncology at the University of Birmingham in the UK, told the Telegraph last week.

“Although the cause is unknown, more and more patients are developing abdominal cancer,” Shivakumar added.

And it's not just stomach cancer. The incidence of colorectal cancer is increasing among U.S. adults under age 55. A study published last year in BMJ Oncology found that the global incidence of early-onset cancer has jumped 79%, and the incidence of early-onset cancer has increased by 27%. Number of people who died from cancer from 1990 to 2019.

Researchers noted that breast cancer, tracheal cancer, bronchial cancer, lung cancer, colorectal cancer, and stomach cancer caused the most illnesses and deaths in young adults in 2019, due to poor diet, He pointed to drinking, smoking, lack of exercise, and excess body fat.

In a 2022 study, Harvard Medical School faculty even referred to early-onset cancer as a “new global pandemic.”

Middleton, 42, did not reveal the type of cancer she had, but tests after undergoing “major abdominal surgery” in January revealed that she had cancer. That's all he said.

“My medical team therefore advised me to undergo preventive chemotherapy, and I am currently in the early stages of that treatment,” Middleton said.

Andrew Beggs, consultant colorectal surgeon and senior clinical research fellow at the University of Birmingham, told the Telegraph the diagnosis must have hit the royal family “like a bus”.

“When I started working as a cancer surgeon 20 years ago, I rarely saw young patients, but now I see them regularly,'' he says, running a clinic for cancer patients under 45. said Dr. Beggs, who runs the business.

“They often don't have symptoms, and because of their age, they often don't think about cancer, so when they come to the hospital, they're shocked,” he added.

The Telegraph spoke to researchers speculating about potential reasons for the growth of certain cancers, including genetic factors and changes in the gut microbiome.

Dr. Veda Giri, a medical oncologist at Yale Medicine and director of the Early-Onset Cancer Program at the Yale Cancer Center at Smilow Cancer Hospital, said this month that the prevalence of early-onset cancers “requires further research in all kinds of areas. “It shows the need.” —Similarly in population science, behavioral health, public health, and basic science. ”

“So we are now focused on providing additional support to these young patients, recognizing that early-onset cancer is a different type of cancer,” she explained.

Experts say the Princess of Wales' public visits could encourage young people to get tested, which could result in more cancer cases being recorded. It has said.

A Texas man diagnosed with stage 2 colon cancer in 2021 says he was inspired by “Black Panther” star Chadwick Boseman, who died of colon cancer in 2020 at age 43. Ta.

“Chadwick Boseman raised awareness,” Randall D. Hardy told his local ABC station in 2022. Just seeing how graceful he was through it all. Even in situations like this, he showed how you can have the strength to keep moving forward and doing the right thing. ”

“Newsroom” actress Olivia Munn, 43, also recently revealed her breast cancer diagnosis and double mastectomy, giving credit to the doctors who assessed her cancer risk.

“The fact that she saved my life,” Mann posted on Instagram this month.