Known risk factors explain only one in three cancers, study finds

doi:10.1136/bmj.a1603

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Roger Dobson

¹Abergavenny

Known risk factors explain just 35% of cancers, a study has found (Annals of Oncology 2008 Sep 2, doi:10.1093/annonc/mdn597).

The French study estimated the proportion of deaths from cancer that occurred in France in 2000 that were attributable to known risk factors. The authors, from the International Agency for Research on Cancer, Lyon, and other agencies, noted that although external factors are responsible for many human cancers, precise estimates of the contribution of known carcinogens in a …