In 1999 cancer took the lives of 272,000 women and 291,100 men. Some 598,000 new cases surfaced for women, while for men the figure was 623,800. Cancer follows as a close second to heart disease as a major killer of Americans. Yet the public, while making some progress recently, is still stuck in bad habits. Even with the increased awareness of antioxidants, the message is muffled by health claim debacles and less than reputable companies preying on the hopelessness of consumers.
But there is good news. Since the FDA approval of the soy claim for the prevention of heart disease, interest in the ingredient's cancer fighting properties is also growing. And there are other nutraceutical ingredients that deserve a closer look into their antioxidant capabilities as well. Major online medical databases and journals are publishing study after study on a variety of antioxidant areas; these include selenium, folate, vitamins A, C and E, lutein and zeaxanthin, lycopene, selenium, green tea, Co Q10 and garlic. What follows is a look at what has been going on in terms of research and clinical trials into various antioxidants.
Cancer Statistics
For women, the main cancer concern is breast cancer, which was expected to affect 175,000 women in 1999, according to an American Cancer Society/Discovery Health Channel Cancer Study. Although there are other cancers that attack women as often as men, this is the primary area of fear among female consumers and also a target of ongoing research for many pharmaceutical companies. There has also been a significant amount of research into various nutraceutical products and their effects of breast and other types of "female" cancers.
On the men's health side, the primary issue today is prostate health in general and prevention of prostate cancer in particular. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer affecting men in the U.S.; according to the cancer study, 179,300 cases of prostate cancer were forecast for 1999; of these 37,000 deaths were projected, topped only by lung cancer as the leading killer. Ingredients such as lycopene, saw palmetto and selenium have been linked to lowering prostate cancer risk; additional work has also been done with carotenoid antioxidants. Considering that a recent study in Cancer (2000; 88:615019) determined that one third of prostate cancer patients supplement medical treatment with complementary therapies, the market potential is large.
The following pages provide an overview of the latest in cancer research throughout the last year:
What Don't All The People Know
As prevalent as cancer is, the public still has a lot to learn, according to a recently published poll by the Discovery Health Channel and the American Cancer Society (ACS). While the American public has made cancer its No. 1 health concern, it still has little understanding of the disease and its ramifications.
In a summary of major findings, women lacked the knowledge of cancer risk factors. For example, 73% of women do not know that the majority of cervical cancers are related to sexual contact and only 17% know that sexually transmitted viruses are the most important factors in determining whether a woman will get cervical cancer (over 90% of cases). Forty-four percent of women are not aware that colon and rectum cancer kills about the same number of men and women. In 1998, 28,800 women and 27,800 men died of colon and rectum cancer, which kills more women each year than all cancers except for lung and breast cancer.
Fifty-four percent of the female participants were concerned about developing breast cancer compared to any of the other "female" cancers. Yet 54% of women incorrectly think that whether a person gets cancer has more to do with family history than age, while only 7% of women think age is the most important determinant for colon and rectum cancer and breast cancer.
On the men's side, three in four men think that men over 40 are at a greater risk of developing testicular cancer when the opposite is true. Also, seven in 10 men underestimate the importance of age compared to family history as a determinant of cancer and 37% of men do not know that 2/3 of all fatal cancers are related to lifestyle.
Americans do recognize many important cancer preventative measures are available in their diets; however, many do not follow them. Overall, a total of 60% (52% of men, 67% of women) knew that limiting intake of high fat foods was "very important" in reducing their risk of cancer and 62% (48% male, 74% female) also knew eating five servings of fruits and vegetables every day was very important. A total of 53% (44% male, 60% female) knew that eating several servings of grains each day was important.
Yet when asked what steps they had personally taken to reduce cancer risk, only 18% (15% male, 20% female) were eating more fruits and vegetables and only 12% (11% men, 13% women) had reduced the amount of fat in their diet.
The ACS/Discovery Health Channel poll also included a test; here's a summary of some of the questions and the percentage of participants who knew the right answers:
Men are at higher lifetime risk of developing cancer in general than women. True-23% right, 69% wrong.
Half of cancer deaths are accounted for by cancers for which there are screenings. True-77% right, 11% wrong.
Two-thirds of all cancer deaths are related to lifestyle. True-53% right, 42% wrong.
Whether a person gets cancer has more to do with family history than age. False-36% right, 64% wrong
African Americans are more likely to develop cancer than persons of any other racial or ethnic group. True-50% right, 50% wrong
Colon and rectum cancer kills about the same number of men and women. True-56% right, 44% wrong
More Americans die from long cancer than any other cancer. True-59% right, 41% wrong
Nearly one-third of breast cancers are hereditary. False-14% right, 81% wrong
The majority of cervical cancers are NOT related to sexual conduct. False-45% right, 55% wrong
Men over 40 are at a greater risk of developing testicular cancer. False-41% right, 59% wrong
More men get prostate cancer than any other cancer except skin cancer. True-75% right, 25% wrong. NW
