Brain Cancer Prevention: An Introduction
Anything that increases a person's chance of developing
brain cancer is called a brain cancer risk factor; anything that decreases a person's chance of developing a disease is called a brain cancer protective factor. Brain cancer prevention means avoiding the risk factors and increasing the protective factors that can be controlled. While brain cancer prevention does not guarantee that someone will not develop brain cancer, it does decrease the chances.
Brain Cancer Prevention: Know the Risk Factors
Although some of the risk factors for brain cancer can be avoided, many cannot.
Specific brain cancer risk factors include:
- Being male
- Race
- Age
- Family history
- Exposure to radiation or certain chemicals.
At this point, there are no known protective factors for brain cancer.
Brain Cancer Prevention: Summary
Although many risk factors can be avoided, it is important to keep in mind that avoiding risk factors does not guarantee that you will not get brain cancer. While most people with a particular risk factor for brain cancer do not actually get the disease, some people are more sensitive than others to factors that can cause brain cancer. If you believe you are at risk, talk to your doctor about methods of brain cancer prevention that might be effective for you.
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