Lung cancer causes more deaths worldwide than any other form of cancer. There are many misconceptions relating to the causes and likelihood of developing the disease. Some of the common myths about lung cancer are discussed below.

Myth 1: Lung Cancer Is A Disease Of The Elderly
Around 6% of lung cancer cases occur in people aged under 50 and 20% in people under 60. In the United States alone, 44,000 people aged under 60 develop the disease each year, the majority of them smokers. A smoker has around a 4% chance of developing lung cancer by the age of 60. Lung cancer is second only to heart disease as the leading cause of death in smokers aged 40 to 60.

If you were to ask a random sample of 50 people whether they thought cancer rates were increasing or decreasing, most would say that they are increasing. Interestingly, age adjusted cancer rates in the USA have been declining at a rate of about 1% per year since the early 1990s.

After a steady increase since the 1960s, age adjusted cancer rates peaked in 1992 at 510.4 per 100,000 per year while the latest data from SEER, puts the current cancer rate at 463.4 per 100,000.

When people find out that the house they live in has asbestos containing materials (ACMs) their first instinct is to panic. Indeed, the internet is awash with horror stories of people’s slow lingering deaths from diseases such as lung cancer and mesothelioma. While there is no doubt that asbestos exposure is a risk factor for both of the aforementioned diseases, it is important to put the risk of developing one of these diseases in perspective.

Several studies have been carried out to determine fibre levels in buildings containing asbestos. A 1991 study of 71 school buildings known to contain asbestos found average asbestos levels of 0.00023 fibres/ml for fibres greater than 5μm in length (fibres shorter than this have relatively low carcinogenic potential).

Sunscreens are known to prevent premature aging of the skin, sunburn, and the two most common forms of cancer: basal cell carcinoma, and squamous cell carcinoma. To date however, no scientific study has shown that sun-screens can prevent the most deadly form of skin cancer, melanoma, which accounts for more than 75% of total skin cancer deaths.

The majority of studies to date on this issue have found that sun-screen use is actually associated with a higher risk of developing melanoma.

Aspartame is an artificial sweetener that was approved for use in the united states in 1981 by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Aspartame is around 200 times sweeter than sugar and is currently the second most widely used artificial sweetener behind sucralose (Splenda).

Aspartame critics claim that the sweetener causes everything from brain tumors and seizures to leukemia. Fortunately aspartame has been the subject of numerous studies of both humans and animals and has been shown to be safe at levels far beyond the acceptable daily intake (ADI).

A new study, published in the Journal “Reviews in Mutation Research” has shed light on some of the myths involving potential causes of cancer such as mobile phones, coffee, fluoridated water and artificial sweeteners.

The research study was carried out by Professor Brendan Stewart who is a cancer specialist at the University of New South Wales, Australia. Stewart analyzed numerous research reports and categorized various activities and chemical agents on their likelihood of causing cancer.

According to Stewart the research was carried out in order to give people some perspective on cancer risk, particularly in the case of low risk events that are often over-hyped in the media.