Causes and symptoms of the most common cancers in each age group revealed – and treatments that could save your life
THERE are a thousand new cancer cases diagnosed every day in the UK – but some types can be avoided with lifestyle changes and cured thanks to new treatments.
Ninety per cent of cancers affect people aged over 50 and half of all cases are in the over-75s.
The latter group now includes King Charles, 75, who is currently undergoing treatment for an undisclosed form of cancer following his diagnosis in February, and has been paying visits to others who have the disease.
The charity Cancer Research UK says that the number of diagnoses in adults aged in their twenties, thirties and forties has risen at more than double the rate of that among over-75s in the past two decades.
But Dr Neil Bayman, who is executive medical director at The Christie specialist cancer hospital, in Withington, Greater Manchester, told Sun on Sunday Health: “We are now better at diagnosing it in younger people than we were 20 years ago.
“That is because awareness has increased and there is more we can do for patients.
Weight loss
“There are changes happening in our cells all the time that can mutate into cancer.
“The longer you live, the more likely that is.
“Some cancers are the result of genetic mutations in our cells which can happen at any time. Some are more affected by environmental or lifestyle factors such as smoking, alcohol and diet, so the amount of time we have had to do all of that increases as you grow older.”
Everyone should make sure they keep a regular watch for general cancer symptoms at all ages.
These may include fatigue, unexplained pain, weight loss, fever and night sweats.
Today, Dr Bayman reveals the cancers that are most likely to affect you in different periods of your life, the possible causes, symptoms to go to your GP with and treatments that could save your life . . .
UNDER 18: LEUKAEMIA
THIS blood cancer accounts for a third of cases in under-14s.
Survival rates have doubled to 69 per cent, five years after diagnosis.
Risk factors: Some cases are thought to be triggered by viral infections.
Symptoms: Pale skin, swollen lymph glands, mystery bruising or bleeding.
Treatment: Bone-marrow and stem-cell transplants have transformed treatment.
CAR-T, a treatment helping the immune system to tackle cancer cells, can be curative for some people.
TWENTIES: SKIN
WHILE melanoma skin cancers are more common in older people, they represent 43 per cent of cancers in women in their early twenties and 18 per cent in men.
Risk factors: Some of us are genetically more susceptible to environmental causes – and ultraviolet light from the sun or sunbeds is the most common.
Symptoms: A new, abnormal mole, one that changes or grows, a change to a patch of skin.
Treatment: Surgery has great success if cancer is caught early.
Immunotherapy is used for advanced melanoma.
THIRTIES: BRAIN
BRAIN and spinal tumours account for 12 per cent of cancers among men in their thirties, and 13 per cent of women.
Risk factors: Exposure to radiation, and genetics.
Symptoms: Headaches, sickness, tiredness, vision problems, behavioural changes.
Treatment: Proton-beam therapy gives longer and better quality of life, with fewer side effects.
Offered at The Christie, it targets a tumour very precisely, so cuts damage to surrounding healthy tissues and organs.
FORTIES: BOWEL
EIGHT in ten bowel-cancer patients survive for a year or more.
While it is most prevalent in over-60s, it remains among the most common cancers in people aged 25-49, particularly men.
Bowel Babe, the late Deborah James campaigned to raise awareness.
Risk factors: Lifestyle, including too much red and processed meat.
Symptoms: Blood in poo, changing bowel habit.
Treatment: If detected early, surgery is undertaken with radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy.
We may treat more advanced cases with specialist surgery, often using robots.
FIFTIES/SIXTIES: BREAST & PROSTATE
BREAST cancer accounts for one third of cancers in women of this age.
Risk factors: Age, weight and alcohol.
Symptoms: A new lump or change in shape or feel of skin.
Treatment: If caught early, surgery is key, plus chemo and radiotherapy.
One in six men get prostate cancer, risk rising with age.
Cause: Obesity and ethnicity, with more cases found in black men.
Symptoms: Needing to wee more or difficulty emptying bladder.
Treatment: Surgery, chemo and radiotherapy, hormone therapy.
SEVENTIES/EIGHTIES: LUNG
LUNG cancer is among the most prevalent and biggest killers in older age, accounting for 16 per cent of cases in men and women alike.
Risk factors: Strongly linked to smoking, but one in ten are non-smokers.
Living in deprived areas with poor housing and air pollution are risks.
Screening 55-74-year-olds can help.
Symptoms: A cough that lasts more than three weeks, coughing up blood and shoulder pain.
Treatment: If detected early, surgery or radiotherapy can be curative.
STAY ALERT
It may be nothing serious, but it pays to be aware of the symptoms.
These can present in all shapes and sizes.
If something in your body doesn’t feel right for you or you experience one or more of the symptoms below, contact your local GP practice:
- Breathlessness
- Frequent infections
- Unexplained night sweats
- Unexpected or unexplained bruising or bleeding
- Blood in your pee – even just once
- An unexplained lump
- Blood in your poo, which may look red or black
- Unexplained weight loss
For three weeks or more:
- Tummy trouble, such as discomfort or diarrhoea
- Unexplained pain or discomfort
- Feeling tired and unwell and not sure why
- Heartburn or indigestion
- Unusual, pale or greasy poo
- A cough that lasts for three weeks or more
- For more information, go to nhs.uk/cancersymptoms