SOURCE: By Karen Heslop
Studies show that Af- rican American men are more prone to certain illnesses. While you may have heard that heart disease is at the top of this list, did you know that cancer is a close second? Even though there have been a lot of advances in medical technology and health, the illnesses that affect Black men haven’t changed significantly. Here’s what you need to know to take care of yourself.
Though Black people make up only 14.2% of the population, studies show that they’re more likely to be diagnosed with cancer and die more quickly after the diagnosis. According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), African American scan be as much as 4 times as likely to develop cancer as other ethnicities. They’re also twice as likely to die after they’ve been diagnosed. In fact, 1in 3 Black men are likely to be told they have cancer while 1 in 5 of them will die. Based on these numbers, the ACS estimates that there will be 111,990 new cases for Black men in 2022 and approximately 36,430 of them will not survive.
To make matters more interesting, studies show that the increased risk for cancer isn’t always related to your lifestyle.
For example, Black men may smoke as much as or even less than other ethnicities but still have the highest risk of lung cancer.
In some cases, the cause can be more complicated. Colon cancer can be linked to being overweight and statistics show that many Black men aren’t maintaining a healthy weight.
However, research shows that your risk of developing this type of cancer may be more rooted in your genetics than your weight.