Cool Facts About Cancer

Cool Facts from: http://facts.randomhistory.com/cancer-facts.html 

• Smoking causes an estimated 90% of lung cancer. Tobacco has killed 50 million people in the last decade. If trends continue, a billion people will die from tobacco use and exposure this century, which equates to one person every six seconds.
• Those who sleep less than six hours a night are more likely to develop colon cancer than those who sleep more
• Cancer has two main characteristics: abnormal cell growth and the ability to spread to other parts of the body (metastasis).
• In 2008, there were an estimated 12,667,500 new cases of cancer worldwide. Eastern Asia had the most new cases (3,720,000) and Micronesia the fewest (700). North America had approximately 1,603,900 new cases.
• One in eight deaths in the world are due to cancer. Cancer causes more deaths than AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria combined.
• Cancer is the leading cause of death in developed countries and the second leading cause of death in developing countries, after heart disease. Globally, heart disease is the number one killer.
• In 2006, a virus called xenotropic murine leukemia virus-related virus (XMRV) was discovered in prostate cells, leading scientists to believe the virus may play a role in causing aggressive prostate cancer.
• In 2008, 7.6 million people died of cancer globally, which equates to 21,000 cancer deaths a day. By 2030, 21.4 million new cancer cases are expected to occur globally with 13.2 million cancer deaths.
• Approximately 15% of all cancers worldwide are due to infections. Undeveloped countries have a higher rate of cancers due to infection (26%) than in developed countries (8%). The microbes most responsible for cancer are the bacterium Helicobacter pylori (gastric cancer), HPV (cervical and other cancers), and Hepatitis B and C (liver cancer).
• Researchers believe that more than half of all cancers and cancer deaths are potentially preventable.
• Lung, prostate, and stomach cancers are the most commonly diagnosed cancers in men. Breast, cervix, and colorectal cancers are the most commonly diagnosed cancers in women.
• The word “cancer” is related to the Greek word “crab” because its finger-like projections were similar to the shape of the crab. Galen, a Roman physician, used the word oncos, which is Greek for “swelling.”
• Approximately 77% of all cancers are diagnosed in people who are 55 years old or older.