A startling report postulating that most cancers (about two-thirds) can be put down to bad luck rather than risk factors like smoking or drinking is premised upon medical research pointing to natural tissue regeneration in the body being wholly unpredictable.
It is believed that when old tired cells are being replaced with new ones by dividing stem cells, there is an inherent risk of a dangerous mutation moving the stem cell a step closer to being cancerous. This is not to suggest it is time to light up or drink on in the hope that life’s lottery won’t have your number on it. Just remember that the remaining third of cancers may be generated from lifestyle risks or simply be passed on genetically.
One issue that arises from the latest findings is that if cancers are a lottery, why are huge funds spend on cancer research? The allocation of resources should not depend on what the developed world decides. There are many more diseases that affect humans, particularly in the developing world. For instance, malaria is still a major cause of fatalities (6,27,000 deaths in 2012) while gastroenteritis is a deadly affliction caused by sheer lack of cleanliness.
So too is the death of women in childbirth arising from nutrition issues and lack of sanitary conditions. If funds can be diverted into research as well as follow-up action to tend to such commonplace killers, it might become possible to save many more lives.
