Downturn ups cancer rates

THE economic downturn threatens to raise cancer rates in Europe as lifestyles change, budgets are cut, and private and public sector employers take short cuts on safety, public health experts said on Monday.

The number of deaths from cancer is falling in the region but prevention efforts are lagging behind, with new cases up by almost 20 per cent to 2.5 million in 2008 from 2.1 million in 2002, the European Cancer Organisation (ECCO) says.

A study in its European Journal of Cancer found the current financial crisis was likely to damage cancer prevention in various ways, including by increasing exposure to risk factors through work or lifestyle changes.

It would also affect occupational safety and influence decisions by governments and companies on funds for research.

'Private companies and governments tend to take shortcuts in occupational safety controls during periods of economic hardship,' said Jose Martin-Moreno, a public health and preventative medicine specialist at Spain's Valencia University.

He examined evidence from studies of the impact of recession on a wide range of factors that feed into cancer prevention measures, including smoking, alcohol consumption, diet and exercise, drug research and occupational risk.