“The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but in ourselves…”
— William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar.
That quote haunted me for years, long before I ever held a linear accelerator’s joystick or delivered radiation to a tumor curled around someone’s spine.
Back then, I didn’t fully grasp its relevance to my work.
Now, after decades in oncology, I see it with stark clarity.
Because here’s the truth:
Up to 42% of cancers are preventable — not through miracle drugs or genetic luck, but through modifiable, everyday choices.
This observation isn’t about blame.
It’s about power.
And it’s time we stopped whispering about it.
Even through the fog of risk, we can walk toward healing. 42% of cancers are preventable, and every step counts.
🔁 Why Cancer Isn’t Just Bad Luck: The Myth of Randomness
When patients hear “cancer,” the next question is often whispered:
Did I cause this?
It’s a painful, complicated moment.
I always remind them: no one deserves this, and no one gets cancer from one bad meal or missed screening.
But I also tell them we know that cancer is not a lightning strike.
Yes, some cancers come from sheer genetic chaos.
But others arise from a slow, silent drift, shaped by inflammation, environment, and habit.
🔁 Inflammation and Obesity: The Hidden Cancer Risks
You don’t see inflammation in the mirror. But it shapes your fate.
Low-grade, chronic inflammation — often fueled by excess fat, poor diet, poor sleep, and stress — is a known contributor to several cancers, including colorectal, breast, and liver.
Chronic inflammation in the etiology of disease across the life span – Nature Medicine
We once thought of obesity as a cosmetic issue. Now we understand it as a biological amplifier of cancer risk:
- Fat cells release cytokines and estrogen-like compounds
- These can trigger DNA damage and tumor-promoting environments
I’m not judging anyone’s weight. I’m inviting a deeper understanding of how the body works — and how we can gently steer it.
Diseases desperate grown,
By desperate appliance are relieved,
Or not at all.”
— Shakespeare, Hamlet.
Sometimes, small daily shifts are our most potent medicine.
🔁 How Alcohol, Smoking & Diet Tip the Scales
If you asked me what four lifestyle changes would make the biggest impact on global cancer rates, I’d say this:
- Stop smoking
- Drink less alcohol
- Eat more plants and fewer processed foods
- Move
🥃 Alcohol
Alcohol is a group 1 carcinogen, the same class as tobacco and asbestos.³
It increases the risk for at least seven cancers, including breast and colorectal.
And even “moderate” drinking has risks, especially for those with other risk factors.
No level of alcohol consumption is safe for our health
🍽️ Diet
Ultra-processed foods cause inflammation, metabolic dysfunction, and now, higher cancer risk.
A 2023 study in The Lancet tied them to a 29% increased risk of colorectal cancer.⁴
It’s not about moral purity. It’s about stacking the odds in your favor.
Prevention Isn’t Perfection. It’s Daily Poetry.
When I talk to patients, I don’t hand them guilt. I hand them a possibility.
- A walk after dinner to quiet insulin spikes
- A decision to swap soda for tea
- A full night of sleep instead of doomscrolling
These things may seem small, but they are acts of devotion, not just to the body, but to the life it still wants.
Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t.”
— Hamlet.
Health is not about perfection. It’s about rhythm.
About small, quiet methods repeated until they shape destiny.
The Truth I Wish More People Knew
When people find out I’m a cancer doctor, they usually ask about treatments.
But the conversation I wish we had more often is this:
What can I do now, before the diagnosis, to change the story?
The answer isn’t sexy. It’s not a pill or a breakthrough headline.
It’s this:
Cancer isn’t always random. And your choices — however small — are not meaningless.
You deserve to know that.
A Gentle Invitation
I don’t write this to scare you.
I write it because knowledge is power, and silence is not protection.
Here’s the truth:
- Cancer is common.
- Up to 42% is preventable.
- That prevention is made of ordinary acts repeated with quiet courage.
What’s one habit you’ve changed for your long-term health? I’d love to hear.
