Over the years, the number of people diagnosed with cancer has increased globally. In Singapore, the top three cancers that affect women are breast, colorectal and lung cancers.

Gynaecological cancers such as cervical, ovarian and endometrial cancers are also amongst the top ten cancers commonly diagnosed in Singaporean women. Gynaecological cancers can develop before menopause but the risk increases with age, especially after menopause.

Research has also outlined the common risk factors that may increase individual’s chance of developing cancer, such as diet, obesity, use of alcohol, smoking, family history of certain cancers etc. Most public health guidelines recommend maintaining a healthy weight, exercising regularly and adopting healthy diet, all of which contribute to reducing the risks of developing cancers in general.

• Healthy weight
  Excessive energy consumed from food and drink is stored as fat in human body. Majority of overweight or obese women are found to have high body fatness, which causes insulin resistance, leading to high level of circulating insulin that indirectly promote cancer growth, especially endometrial and breast cancers. Increasing level of circulating estrogen in overweight or obese women is also known to increase risk of developing breast, endometrial and ovarian cancers. Overall, these metabolic syndromes associated with high body fatness and chronic inflammation create a potential environment for cancer growth. Apart from cancers, overweight or obese people are at higher risk of developing chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Therefore, maintaining healthy weight is one of the key factors to reduce your cancer risk.
  
  
• Physical activity
  Strong evidence suggests that regular physical activity may reduce the risk of endometrial, breast and colorectal cancers as exercise helps to improve insulin sensitivity, reduce body fatness, decrease circulating estrogen levels and chronic inflammation. Therefore, being physically active is pivotal to helping achieve a healthy weight and thereby reducing cancer risks.
  
  
• Healthy eating
  Increasing the consumption of wholegrains, fruits and vegetables has been shown to be protective against most types of cancers, especially colorectal cancer. Such foods contain high amounts of anti-tumorigenic agents, various antioxidants (Vitamin C, carotenoids, flavonoids, selenium, zinc etc.), phytoestrogens as well as dietary fibre. The combination of these dietary components has been found to have positive effects on reducing cancers’ risk in general. Additionally, the consumption of such high fibre food also results in better glycemic response, which in turn helps to improve insulin resistance and protects against obesity-related cancers.