The occurrence of cancer does increase as people
grow older. Nearly 80 percent of all cancers are
diagnosed at ages 55 and older, according to the
ACS.
Your family
history impacts your chances of developing cancer.
About 5 to 10 percent of cancers are clearly hereditary,
says the ACS.
But our lifestyle also impacts our risks. For
example, smokers are 10 times more likely
to develop lung
cancer than nonsmokers. Nutrition, diet and environmental
exposures and even sunshine play a part
in our
cancer risks.
The American Cancer Society reports that men have
a 1 in 2 lifetime chance of developing some kind
of cancer. For women, the risk is 1 in 3.
That includes all kinds
of cancer, including the most common -- skin
cancer
-- which accounts for 1.3 million new cases a
year.
