Cancer Case Rates Are Rising Across Generations and a Private Spacewalk is Delayed

Science Quickly

Scientific American

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4.2 • 639 Ratings

🗓️ 5 August 2024

⏱️ 9 minutes

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Summary

The American Cancer Society published a study suggesting that for 8 or 34 cancers tracked, case rates are rising from one generation to the next. While headlines often point to sedentary lifestyles and higher weights as a possible cause, some experts say that these factors alone cannot explain the spike. In more hopeful oncology news, there’s a new blood test for colorectal cancer–though it doesn’t replace the importance of colonoscopies. SpaceX is delaying their attempt at the first-ever private spacewalk—billionaire Jared Isaacman will have to wait. And on the ground, move over hardwood and softwood—two surviving species of the Liriodendron genus point to a new categorization of midwood. Recommended reading: Gen X Faces Higher Cancer Rates Than Any Previous Generation Why We’ll Never Live in Space E-mail us at [email protected] if you have any questions, comments or ideas for stories we should cover! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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0:00.0	Understanding the human body is a team effort. That's where the Yachtel group comes in.
0:05.8	Researchers at Yachtolt have been delving into the secrets of probiotics for 90 years. Yacold also
0:11.5	partners with nature portfolio to advance gut microbiome science through the global grants for
0:16.6	gut health, an investigator-led research program. To learn more about Yachtold, visit yacult.co.com.j
0:23.8	That's Y-A-K-U-L-T-C-O-J-P. When it comes to a guide for your gut, count on Yacolt.
0:40.2	Happy Monday listeners.
0:45.0	Let's kick off the first full week of August by catching up on some science news.
0:48.6	For Scientific American Science quickly, I'm Rachel Feltman. Last Wednesday, researchers with the American Cancer Society published a study suggesting that for a number of cancers, case rates are rising from one generation to the next.
1:05.0	They looked at 34 different cancers, and in eight of them, incidence rates went up with every five-year interval they looked
1:12.1	at from 1920 to 1990. So in other words, the cohort born in 1965 had higher rates than the cohort
1:20.1	born in 1960, but lower rates than the 1970 cohort and so on. In another nine cancers, while rates had declined for some period of time,
1:31.4	they started to rise again in younger cohorts recently. The researchers emphasized that they
1:37.4	don't yet have a conclusive explanation for the trend. And while headlines often point to
1:42.9	sedentary lifestyles and higher weights as a leading
1:45.5	culprit, that's particularly true for a recent surge in colorectal cancers in young people,
1:50.7	other experts have sounded the alarm to say that these factors alone cannot explain the spike.
1:56.1	But we did get some good news on that front. Last Monday, the Food and Drug Administration approved
2:01.4	a new blood test for colorectal cancer. Guardant Health's test is called Shield, and it was
2:06.5	previously available as a diagnostic tool for doctors, but its out-of-pocket price tag ran almost
2:11.8	$900. Hopefully now that it's FDA approved, it will be covered by more insurance carriers.
2:17.5	Shield isn't a replacement for colonoscopies. Those procedures are Hopefully now that it's FDA approved, it will be covered by more insurance carriers.
2:20.6	Shield isn't a replacement for colonoscopies.
	...

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