Study to explore why bowel cancer is becoming more common in young adults
Bowel cancer was once a disease found mainly in older adults but figures suggest cases are rising among adults under the age of 50.
A quarter of a million people are needed for a new study to investigate why bowel cancer cases are rising among younger adults.
Bowel cancer was once a disease found mainly in older adults but figures suggest cases are rising among adults under the age of 50.
Experts said early-onset bowel cancer has increased “substantially” around the world since 1990, and the UK has one of the fastest rising rates.
It is not clear what is driving the rise, though obesity is thought to be a potential factor.
Experts at King’s College London and health science company Zoe want 250,000 adults across the UK to take part in the study.
The trial, known as Prospect-UK, will track people over time, looking at diet and lifestyle factors.
Participants will complete online questionnaires on their diet, lifestyle, environment, health and other factors.
They will also be asked for their information to be linked to their electronic health records so researchers can track cancer cases.
A small group will be asked to complete more detailed diet diaries and provide blood and stool samples.
“Over just a few generations our lifestyles, diets and environments have changed dramatically,” said Professor Sarah Berry, chief investigator of the trial and professor of nutritional sciences at King’s College London.
“But we don’t know which of these changes are increasing people’s risk of bowel cancer or which ones could help reduce it.
“We urgently need large-scale, long-term data to uncover the true causes of early-onset bowel cancer.”
Dr Rosiered-Brownson Smith, study research associate at King’s College London, said: “Although rates of early-onset bowel cancer are rising, it remains relatively uncommon, which means we need large groups of people to take part in research to help us understand why we are seeing this worrying trend.
“At the same time, our food environment has become increasingly complex, and this means we need to look at diet in much greater detail.
“In the UK, around 60% of our calorie intake comes from highly processed foods, but these foods are not all the same.
“They can differ substantially in their ingredients, processing methods and nutritional composition, even within the same food category.”
Dr Smith added: “For the first time, we are collecting detailed, brand-level information about the foods people actually eat.
“This will allow us to better understand which foods and dietary patterns may be linked to the development of early-onset bowel cancer.
“Combining detailed dietary information with long-term health data, we hope Prospect-UK will help us better understand the complex relationship between what we eat and our risk of disease.”
Figures from Cancer Research UK show there are around 48,200 new bowel cancer cases in the UK every year, including around 2,900 in people aged 25-49.
The charity said that between the early 1990s and 2019, overall cancer incidence rates in 25 to 49-year-olds in the UK increased by 24%.
Dr David Scott, director of global research initiative Cancer Grand Challenges, said: “Bowel cancer is still much more common in older people, but rising rates in younger adults pose a question we are working to answer.
“Diet and lifestyle may be part of the picture, but we need to understand what else could be contributing and how these factors interact.
“Prospect-UK will help investigate that question as part of the international Prospect team’s work, through Cancer Grand Challenges.
“The global team is working to understand what is driving this rise in younger people and, ultimately, identify new ways to prevent bowel cancer.”
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