Barely a day goes by without the television, radio, newspapers or internet telling us that something is good or bad for our health. And almost every week, we hear a new report about something that makes us more or less likely to develop cancer.
According to some reports, the contraceptive pill can increase our risk of some cancers, but decrease our risk of others. These 'risk' stories are often accompanied by a statistic, such as HRT 'Doubles Breast Cancer Risk'.
So how are we supposed to make sense of all this information? How can we tell how 'big' a particular risk is? And can we, or should we, change our lifestyle to accommodate these risks?
This section of 'Cancer & research' will explain some of the mysteries and misconceptions surrounding the concept of 'risk'.
- What is 'cancer risk'?
- What is a 'risk factor'?
- Measuring risk factors
- Communicating risk
- Separating fact from fiction
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