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Cancer of the colon and rectum is the leading cause of cancer deaths in Portugal, with an incidence of about 7,000 new cases per year and a record of 4,000 deaths per year.
One of the types of cancer. Pancreatic cancer, which affects 1,500 new cases a year, and whose symptoms are sometimes overlooked: stomach syndrome, back, jaundice, has resulted in a sharp increase in mortality. This tumor is more resistant to treatment than other types of cancer and in 2020 will be the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the world according to estimates by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Esophageal cancer is currently the eighth largest cancer in the world. the incidence rate has increased due to the increase in the prevalence of the most important risk factors – obesity and gastroesophageal reflux. With stomach cancer, Portugal has the highest number of cancer deaths in the European Union and is the sixth country in the world.
Finally, liver cancer is the fifth leading cause of death in Portugal for ages under 70 years. The main causes are alcohol, hepatitis C and B and obesity.
Why do you die so much from digestive tract cancer in Portugal?
Digestive cancers (esophagus, stomach, pancreas, colon and rectum, liver), taken together, are most common in Portugal and in other countries. There are geographical differences, therefore, if we consider each of these tumors separately. Thus, if we consider cancers of the colon and rectum, the prevalence is higher in Western and developed countries where Portugal is located, although the prevalence is even higher in countries such as the United States or the United States. Australia. With regard to gastric cancer, the prevalence is more prevalent in East – Japan, China, but also in the underdeveloped countries of South America – Colombia.
In Europe, we have high prevalence countries, especially in Eastern Europe and Portugal. With regard to esophageal cancer, we have two variants – the type of hawthorn clbadically badociated with excessive consumption of alcohol and tobacco and the latter having a tendency to decrease and the type Adenocarcinoma badociated with gastroesophageal reflux, badociated with excess weight or even obesity more and more prevalent in the western world.
Finally pancreatic cancer whose incidence seems to increase especially in developed countries of the western world. Liver cancer is closely related to the existence of a chronic liver disease – cirrhosis of the liver.
What are the main risk factors for the disease?
For tumors of the esophagus, hair-type head, the main factors the risk is tobacco and alcohol in excess. There are some cases badociated with human papillomavirus (HPV) infection for which there is already a vaccine.
For oesophageal tumors, a variant adenocarcinoma, the main risk factor is gastroesophageal reflux disease, an extremely common disease. to reach 25% of the general population
For stomach cancer, the main risk factor is infection with Helicobacter pylori [19459109] why it is increasingly recommended to # 39; eradicate.
In stomach cancer, it is also shown that a diet high in salt and low in fruits and vegetables can also predispose to the onset of this neoplasia. For pancreatic cancer, alcohol consumption, smoking, diabetes mellitus and a positive family history are the main risk factors.
It should be noted that overweight and obesity, as well as the lack of exercise, are risk factors for some of these neoplasms, namely the distal esophagus, pancreas, the colon and the rectum and perhaps the stomach. With regard to liver cancer, the main risk factor remains chronic and excessive consumption of alcohol, followed by chronic infections with viruses C and B. Note also that overweight and obesity can also lead to cirrhosis hepatic. difficult to control.
Is it possible to prevent digestive cancer?
The most effective way to prevent these neoplasias will be to counteract the risk factors already described. Thus, a healthy lifestyle, a balanced diet, the fight against overweight, badociated as much as possible with a regular physical activity, constitute an effective preventive strategy against many diseases such as cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, as well as many neoplasias digestives [19659002] Controlling the consumption of alcohol is also an important preventive measure. It is also important to talk about screening programs – validated only for cancer of the colon and rectum. For cancers of the upper gastrointestinal tract, stomach and pancreas, screening programs are not recommended, but it is important that the doctor and the patient are attentive to the symptoms – cardiac malaise, abdominal pain, weight loss – so that the diagnosis is made early in the diagnostic process.
Is the prognosis of the disease very varied?
It is quite different for the different neoplasms, which depend mainly on the stage at which the neoplasm is diagnosed. It is more favorable to neoplasms of the colon and rectum, followed by distal esophagus or stomach, and much less favorable to neoplasms of the esophagus and pancreas. But, again, this prognosis is very dependent on the stage of neoplasia. For the early stages, the prognosis is always much more favorable than for the advanced stages
Are there effective treatments?
Yes. The only cure for digestive cancer is surgery. However, for the vast majority of digestive tumors, with the exception of the colon, the results of surgery can often be improved by practicing chemotherapy and / or radiation before surgery.
The achievements of these therapies may also be recommended later. of surgery, to consolidate the treatment.
Although these are the clbadic therapies for treating digestive cancer, there are many others, such as very early stage endoscopic therapies, interventional radiology-related therapies, widely used in the treatment of liver cancers or liver metastases, innovative radiotherapy techniques – such as SBRT, among others
It should be emphasized here that the discussion of cancer must be multidisciplinary from the beginning. From the diagnostic approach to the therapeutic decision – this is the best approach that allows the best cure rate with the highest degree of preservation of the patient's quality of life, with lower risks and greater gain in terms of survival without disease and quality of life. This is the only way to overcome this disease.
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