The global burden of cancer is increasing, making cancer prevention one of the most significant health challenges we currently face, including Scotland where the most recent data show there were nearly 35.5K new cases of cancer in 2021. Alongside this, improvements in early detection and treatment have significantly increased the number of years that people live after a diagnosis of cancer, although survival differs markedly between different cancer types. Health-related behaviours (including diet, nutrition and physical activity) are increasingly recognised as important for long-term health of people living with and beyond cancer and there is demand for reliable, evidence-based guidance from health professionals and patients alike. World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) recommends that people living with and beyond cancer follow as many of their cancer prevention recommendations as they are able (these are an integrated pattern of behaviours that the evidence consistently shows is linked to reduced cancer risk), but making more specific recommendations for this group has been hampered by limited evidence.
Over the past few years, WCRF has been working to address this, with their flagship Global Cancer Update Programme (CUP Global) focusing on reviewing the evidence for people living with and beyond cancer. WCRF works with a research team at Imperial who have conducted eight systematic reviews on this. The reviews investigated the extent to which certain modifiable risk factors (those related to diet, nutrition and physical activity) impact mortality (cancer-specific and all-cause), risk of cancer recurrence and health-related quality of life in people after a diagnosis of breast and colorectal cancers. An expert panel judged the strength of the evidence and integrated this with patient perspectives, to develop new guidance for people living with and beyond cancer. This new guidance adds to their existing recommendation by highlighting specific behaviours which evidence suggests may be beneficial for this group. For breast cancer, evidence suggested that a diet rich in dietary fibre and being physically active potentially improved outcomes and overall survival, with no evidence of adverse outcomes from soy foods. For colorectal cancer, evidence suggested that a physically active lifestyle, a diet rich in plant-based foods, wholegrain foods, and coffee, but avoiding sugary drinks, potentially improved outcomes and overall survival.
Developing evidence-based recommendations is just the first step in supporting population health. WCRF has developed a Policy Blueprint for Cancer Prevention, designed as a one-stop shop for policymakers and advocates, it aims to support implementation of their recommendations. It includes policy advice for population-level prevention across diet and weight, breastfeeding, physical activity and alcohol and outlines a package of policy recommendations for preventing cancer and living well beyond cancer.
Links:
Guidance for people living with and beyond cancer: https://www.wcrf.org/about-us/news-and-blogs/new-guidance-for-people-living-with-and-beyond-breast-and-colorectal-cancer/
Blueprint for cancer prevention: https://www.wcrf.org/research-policy/library/policy-blueprint-for-cancer-prevention/
The Global Cancer Update Programme (CUP Global) analyses global research on how diet, nutrition, physical activity and body weight affect cancer risk and survival. It is produced by World Cancer Research Fund International (WCRF International) in partnership with American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR), World Cancer Research Fund in the UK (WCRF) and Wereld Kanker Onderzoek Fonds (WKOF) in the Netherlands.
