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Foods that fight cancer (Part I) By Mumtaz Khalid Ismail
More Links Risk Factors of Cancer Dietary Factors and Cancer How Cancer is pread to other organs Cancer is the most dreaded disease and is a leading cause of death in the most developed countries. This is a major health problem even in developing countries like ours. In a simple word cancer is a disease in which there is accelerated multiplication of cells in an abnormal way and these cells can invade other tissues.
The progression of disease and survival in cancer depends up on the type of organ affected, cells involved, rate of cell multiplication, and the time of diagnosis. There are lot of advances have taken place in recent years in understanding cancer and about its management. This has given a new hope to millions of cancer patients.
Cancer can effect all organs and live tissues of the body. The incidence of specific type of cancer varies with age, sex, and region but while considering human population in toto, oral cancer is the most common form in Indian population. The other common types of cancers are of lungs, skin, blood, cervix, breast, brain, gastrointestinal tract, and liver.
- Tobaccos, in its different forms are the most notorious environmental factor that causes various types of cancers. Tobacco is associated with cancer of mouth, pharynx, larynx, lungs, oesophagus, pancreas, bladder, kidney, and stomach.
- Alcohol is associated with oesophagus, liver, and rectum.
- Ultra violet rays are associated with skin cancer.
- Exposure to radiation is a major risk factor for development of cancer.
- Viral and parasitic organism are seems to be associated with cancer. Viral infections like HIV, Epstine-Barr virus, Cytomegalovirus, hepatitis B virus etc are few of the viruses that believed to cause cancer. Schistosomiasis increase the risk of urinary bladder cancer.
- Drugs - drugs like hormonal preparations are associated with cancer
- Occupational exposure - Exposure to benzene, arsenic, cadmium, chromium, vinyl chloride, asbestos etc are some of the carcinogenic occupational hazards.
- Many dietary factors are implicated as causative factors of different types of cancers. They are
- Calories: Excessive calorie intake is associated with increase risk of developing endometrial and breast cancer.
- Fats: High fat intake especially saturated fat leads to obesity. This condition is a risk factor to develop cancer of the uterus, gall bladder and breast.
Other Factors:
- Charring food during roasting, grilling or barbecuing can produce large amounts of potentially carcinogenic substances in the burnt areas.
- Among the food contaminants, aflatoxins are linked with liver cancers. The food items such as groundnuts, corn, coconut, and pepper when stored under favourable conditions of temperature and humidity may get contaminated with aflatoxins.
- Free radicals toxicity is a risk factor in developing cancer
- In takes of pickles, or dried salted fish containing nitrites as preservative been linked with stomach cancer.
- Containers made of polyvinyl chloride used for packaging and storing foods are known to be carcinogenic.
- High intake of beef is implicated in bowel cancer
Cancers Dietary factors Oral cavity Alcohol, tobacco, smoking, betel nut Oesophagus Opium, alcohol, tobacco Stomach Pickle and salted foods, smoked and fried foods, foods rich in starch with very little fresh fruits and vegetables, nitrites, nitrates and nitrosamines Colon and rectal Refined carbohydrate, low fibre, low intake of green vegetables, high intake of meat Nasopharyngeal Salted fish Larynx Tobacco, alcohol Lung Tobacco, low intake of green and yellow vegetables Bladder Industrial chemicals, artificial sweeteners, coffee Prostate, breast, cervical cancer Low intake of green and yellow vegetables Pancreas Tobacco, coffee and meat Liver Hepatitis B viral infection, Mycotoxins etc Cervix Low intake of fruits and vegetables * Source: textbook of human nutrition. Kamala et al
Cancer can be spread through different route. The commonest route is by direct spread. Other major routes are through blood, lymphatic, natural cavity etc. The route of spread of cancer depends up on the type of cells involved and the site of cancer.
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Few types of cancers are seen to run in families like retinoblastoma and like wise person with chromosomal abnormality are at risk to develop cancer. For example Down's syndrome patients are at increased risk to develop blood cancer. Genetic factors are difficult to prove and higher incidence may be due to many factors they share including environment and food. 
