Doctor warns these everyday habits could be secretly raising your ovarian cancer risk | Health
Ovarian cancer is considered a recalcitrant disease with poor overall survival, partially related to advanced stage at diagnosis, given the lack of reliable or valid screening tests. While recent advances in therapy, including the Radical Surgery and use of targeted therapies, hold promise to enhance survival, 75 per cent of women diagnosed with invasive epithelial stage III disease, the most common presentation, will succumb to the disease within five years.
The average overall 5-year survival rates are approximately 48.6 per cent. Hence, there is a need to understand the modifiable risk factors for ovarian cancer.
What’s secretly raising your ovarian cancer risk?
In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Dr Harshit Shah, Associate Surgical Oncologist at Fortis Hospital in Kalyan, shared, “One of the more promising strategies that impact ovarian cancer outcomes are a modification of lifestyle factors, such as diet and physical activity, which have been associated with ovarian cancer risk and survival in several epidemiological studies.”
He revealed, “Dietary content and the association between dietary patterns, body weight and energy imbalance are factors that may lie behind the mechanisms that impact the risk of developing cancer. All of these can affect a number of cancer cell-related biological pathways, such as cell cycle regulation, cell signaling, carcinogen bio-activation, inflammation and Angiogenesis.”
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Dr Harshit Shah cautioned, “Unhealthy dietary components such as sugary drinks, refined carbohydrates, salty snacks, starchy foods and red and processed meats are rich in N-nitroso compounds, salt, heme iron, heterocyclic amines and after cooking, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. These substances are all thought to contribute to the carcinogenic effects of meat consumption.”
Additionally, a high alcohol intake increases the risk of cancer because it increases the cell membrane’s permeability to carcinogens and at the same time inhibits their detoxification. Dr Harshit Shah warned, “A diet rich in saturated fats and refined sugars may lead to increased body fat and impairment of glucose and insulin regulation, which together can affect physiological Hormonal Homeostasis, leading to an increase in cancer risk.”
The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies shift working as a probable human carcinogen because of circadian rhythm disruption, where changing plasma concentrations of the lipid soluble hormone melatonin (may be produced by pineal gland and ovary) disrupts normal rhythm. Dr Harshit Shah added, “Obesity appears to be a risk factor for ovarian cancer as a meta-analysis of 47 studies found a 12 per cent increase in ovarian cancer risk for women with a BMI of greater than 30 kg/m2.”
Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.
