A new study published in the scientific journal JAMA explains the reason for the difference in cancer rates between women and men, revealing that lifestyle and health factors play a key role.


According to the study, the rate of cancer in men is higher than in women, and this is not only due to biological differences such as genetics, hormones, and immunity, but is also related to factors such as smoking, alcohol consumption, diet, and chronic diseases.


To reach these conclusions, researchers relied on data from two large studies in China and the UK, involving more than 589,000 participants, in which 34 types of cancer and 11 modifiable risk factors were examined.


The results showed that risk factors explained 84.4% of the difference in cancer rates between men and women in China, but this rate was only 26.2% in the UK.


In China, smoking was the largest factor, accounting for 52% of the difference, followed by alcohol consumption at 15.1%, while in the UK, obesity was the main factor, explaining nearly 8% of the difference, followed by smoking at 6.26% and type 2 diabetes at 3.51%.


Researchers emphasize that these results will help in designing prevention plans tailored to the characteristics of each society, while more research is needed to understand other biological and environmental factors.