New findings from the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) reveal a concerning rise in cancers among people under 50, with overlapping trends observed in England, the Netherlands, and the US. While a cancer diagnosis is always serious, it is particularly impactful for younger age groups, where most individuals are otherwise healthy. The data highlights a troubling increase in colorectal (bowel) cancer, as well as rises in uterine and kidney cancers in England.
Rare but rising among younger adults
These diseases remain rare in young people: ten times more adults in their 50s, 60s, and 70s are diagnosed than those in their 20s, 30s, and 40s. Earlier detection is thought to be one factor behind the rise in younger patients. Diagnosing more cancers sooner is an explicit policy goal in England, where late diagnosis and lower screening uptake contribute to mortality rates higher than elsewhere in Europe.
However, diagnostic improvements are not the main reason for increased cases. While research is ongoing, evidence points to obesity and poor diet as causes of cancers, as well as heart disease and type 2 diabetes. The Prospect-UK trial is currently seeking 250,000 participants for a longitudinal study into early-onset bowel cancer, examining nutrition in greater detail than previously attempted.
Lessons from tobacco control
International efforts to cut lung cancer through targeting smoking set a powerful precedent for public health campaigning. Despite delays caused by tobacco industry lobbying, it remains the gold standard of regulation combined with messaging to bring about behaviour change. The WCRF data shows lung cancer rates in under-50s have continued falling.
So far, efforts to cut obesity have had nothing like the same impact. Patterns are not the same everywhere; one recent study found that in some countries a rapid rise had been replaced by a levelling-off. But English-speaking countries have some of the worst records, and the lack of strong action in the UK is among the big disappointments of health policy in the last decade.
Political inaction and the need for bold steps
Politicians from Boris Johnson to Wes Streeting have committed to obesity action plans, only to water them down in the face of opposition from the food and drink industries. Last year, scientists wrote to Mr Streeting to protest that the government had done “virtually nothing” to alert consumers to the carcinogenic properties of the nitrites added to bacon and ham.
There is a grim irony in dramatic advances in cancer research and treatment coinciding with the rise in early-onset cancers. For many doctors and patients, this is a period of hope. But politicians and health bosses must guard against a situation in which some groups have improved prospects, while others face increased risks linked to socioeconomic disadvantages.
In relation to obesity and diet, the close link with poverty points to the need for ministers to view public spending holistically, and to recognise that the NHS is not the only institution with the capacity to improve health. While more research into early-onset cancers is needed, existing data tells us a great deal. Governments should be as bold in tackling the causes of obesity as they once were in confronting big tobacco.
