Preventability for Diet, Weight, Physical Activity
Updated estimates of cancer preventability – the population-attributable fraction, or PAF% – through diet, activity and weight management. For the most common US cancers, close to one third of cases are preventable through a healthy diet, being physically active and maintaining a healthy weight.
Cancer Type | New Cases | Percentage Prevented | *Number of Cases Prevented |
Breast, female | 266,120 | 33% | 87,820 |
Colorectal | 140,250 | 47% | 65,918 |
Endometrial | 63,230 | 59% | 37,306 |
Esophageal | 17,290 | 33% | 5,706 |
Gallbladder | 12,190 | 22% | 2,682 |
Kidney | 65,340 | 24% | 15,682 |
Liver | 42,220 | 30% | 12,666 |
Lung | 234,030 | 36% | 84,251 |
Mouth, Pharyngeal & Laryngeal | 44,320 | 63% | 27,922 |
Ovarian | 22,240 | 5% | 1,112 |
Pancreatic | 55,440 | 19% | 10,534 |
Prostate (advanced) | 21,410 | 11% | 2,355 |
Stomach | 26,240 | 15% | 3,936 |
TOTAL PREVENTABLE |
357,887 |
*Rounded, based on AICR/WRCF, Policy and Action for Cancer Prevention 2009; Continuous Update Project reports; American Cancer Society, Cancer Facts & Figures 2018.
Methods
Preventability estimates are important to help policy-makers assess the impact of different approaches to reduce cancer risk.
AICR/WCRF preventability estimates are calculated using information on:
- Cancer risk associated with lifestyle factor
- Prevalence of low, moderate and high levels/consumption of lifestyle factor in each country
- US incidence of different cancers
The methods used to calculate the estimates can be found in Appendix A of the Policy Report.
Estimates were made for lifestyle factors judged to be convincing or probable modifiers of cancer risk in Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity and the Prevention of Cancer: a Global Perspective and its continuous updates.
These preventability figures are estimates; they are not precise values. They are likely underestimates, as only those cancers judged to have convincing or probable links to lifestyle factors are included.