According to a study published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, half of all cases of cancer could be prevented if people in the United States led healthier lives. The report identified smoking, lack of exercise and a poor diet as important factors behind U.S. cancer rates.
Poverty and inequality were also cited as factors. Researchers acknowledged that “as in other countries, social stratification in the United States exacerbates lifestyle differences such as access to health care, especially prevention and early detection services.” It was specifically noted that “mammograms, colon screening, diet and nutrition support, smoking cessation resources and sun protection mechanisms are simply less available to the poor.”
Poor and working people in the United States are subject to living conditions that raise their vulnerability to cancer and other diseases, and are unable to afford preventative treatment or screening for possibly fatal diseases because of the for-profit nature of the U.S. health care system.
