Experts have cautioned that sleep deprivation may be subtly contributing to an increase in young individuals receiving cancer diagnoses.
It has long been hypothesized that insomniacs—those who frequently have trouble falling asleep—are more susceptible to the illness than healthy sleepers.
In the UK, sleep disorders are becoming more common, with about 25% of persons not getting enough sleep.
Over a million individuals under 50 die from cancer every year, and the number of young people diagnosed with the disease has increased by nearly 80% over the past three decades.
Experts are still trying to figure out why, and many believe there isn’t going to be a single smoking gun.
Experts at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting in Chicago, however, think that insufficient sleep may be somewhat to blame.
According to the study, early-onset bowel, breast, ovarian, and uterine cancers were more common among those who had sleep issues.
According to Dr. Rowan Miller, a consultant oncologist at University College London, sleep deprivation may be a factor in the unexplained increase in cancer cases without clear behavioral risk factors like drinking, smoking, or obesity.
Breast cancer risk is up to three times higher in those who suffer from insomnia.
“It’s true that many cancers, including ovarian cancer, are on the rise in young people,” Dr. Miller stated. “What’s unclear is why certain cancers, which aren’t considered lifestyle cancers associated with obesity, smoking, or a lack of exercise, are on the rise.”
“But, there’s obviously something about the way we live our lives these days that’s raising the risk of many different cancers, and insomnia may be partially to blame, affecting hormone levels that could raise the risk of cancer.”
Researchers from Jefferson Health New Jersey and the Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center conducted the study, which revealed that insomniacs had a 57% higher chance of receiving an ovarian cancer diagnosis within five years of their initial diagnosis.
Additionally, during the same time span, they were around twice as likely to be diagnosed with bowel cancer and more than three times as likely to get breast cancer, both of which seem to be impacted by obesity and smoking.
Experts described the results of the study, which included over 18 million people without sleep problems and over 413,000 people with insomnia, as “interesting,” but stated that additional research is necessary to fully comprehend the connection between sleep and cancer.
“I think it’s probably multifactorial, but it’s definitely clear that we are seeing more cancers in younger people,” Dr. Miller continued.
“Living a sedentary lifestyle, smoking, drinking, and not being aware of symptoms will all increase the risk of disease.”
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According to Dr. David Garley, a general practitioner and director of the Better Sleep Clinic in Bristol, England, the association can also go the other way, with undetected underlying malignancies affecting sleep quality.
Additionally, he stated that when people are sleep deprived, they are more prone to neglect other health-conscious behaviors like exercising, eating healthily, and interacting with friends, which raises the risk of the illness.
It is estimated that 16 million adults in the UK—roughly one in three—have sleeplessness.
In the UK, there are about 7,500 instances of ovarian cancer annually.
