Cancer survival may not be wake-up call
Wednesday May 22nd, 2013
People who survive cancer do not adopt healthy lifestyles, new findings suggest today.
Instead
former cancer patients tend to be less active and more sedentary than
other people of the same age, according to a major British study.
Specialists said the findings showed the idea that a diagnosis of disease would prove a "wake-up" call was wrong.
Researcher Professor Jane Wardle, of University College London, said the findings showed reductions in use of alcohol and tobacco among cancer survivors and the general public at about the same rate.
She said: "Anecdotally, we often hear that a cancer diagnosis is a wake-up call - but the results from our large study show that this is not the general rule.
"People who received a cancer diagnosis during the time we were studying them were no more likely to quit smoking, drink less or become more active than those who remained cancer-free."
Sara Hiom, of Cancer Research UK, said: “More needs to be done to encourage cancer survivors to take a look at their lifestyle choices and support them in making improvements that could increase their chances of survival and sense of wellbeing.
"Patients and health professionals could be made more aware of the information and evidence on these issues and supported in how to make manageable changes after diagnosis and treatment.”
Williams K. at al. Is a cancer diagnosis a trigger for health behaviour change? Findings from a prospective, population-based study. British Journal of Cancer 22 May 2013.
Tags: Cancer | Drug & Alcohol Abuse | Fitness | UK News
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