Lifestyle and environmental factors could be causing up to 90 per cent of cancers

The great majority of cancer cases are caused by lifestyle and environmental factors, rather than ‘bad luck’ with random genetic mutations, according to a study published in the journal Nature. The study, by Stony Brook Cancer Centre in New York, suggested extrinsic factors like smoking, drinking, diet, exposure to UV radiation and air pollution cause 70 to 90 per cent of cancers. There is still an element of luck involved, as not everyone who is exposed to external risks gets cancer, but the study suggests that healthy lifestyle changes could stack the odds in our favour.