Quarter of healthy years lost to breast cancer are due to lifestyle factors, research finds

Quarter of healthy years lost to breast cancer are due to lifestyle factors, research finds Largest study of its kind suggests high red meat consumption has biggest impact, followed by smoking More than a quarter of healthy years lost to breast cancer are due to lifestyle factors such as red meat intake and smoking, according to the largest study of its kind. The study, published in the Lancet Oncology, used data from population-based cancer registries to produce a comprehensive analysis of breast cancer and its risk factors. The data used, spanning from 1990 to 2023 from more than 200 countries, was also used to produce forecasts of trends regarding breast cancer up to 2050. In the UK, about one in seven women will develop the disease in their lifetime. New breast cancer cases in women are predicted to rise by a third globally, from 2.3m in 2023 to more than 3.5m in 2050, according to the analysis by the Global Burden of Disease Study Breast Cancer Collaborators. The findings also suggest that maintaining a healthy lifestyle, including not smoking, doing sufficient physical activity, lowering red meat consumption, and having a healthy BMI may prevent more than a quarter of healthy years lost to illness and premature death due to breast cancer worldwide. The figures follow previous research by Cancer Research UK, which found that more than four in 10 UK cancer cases were preventable through lifestyle changes. Kayleigh Bhangdia, from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington and lead author of the study, said: “Breast cancer continues to take a profound toll on women’s lives and communities. While those in high-income countries typically benefit from screening and more timely diagnosis and comprehensive treatment strategies, the mounting burden of breast cancer is shifting to low- and lower middle-income countries where individuals often face later-stage diagnosis, more limited access to quality care and higher death rates that a...