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Men consistently develop cancer more often than women, but how much of that gap is due to lifestyle choices depends heavily on where you live. A new study found that modifiable factors like smoking and alcohol explained 84% of the sex gap in China, but only 26% in the UK. The takeaway: cancer prevention strategies need to be tailored to specific populations, not applied as a one-size-fits-all approach.
Men are diagnosed with most non-sex-specific cancers at higher rates than women worldwide, but a major new study published in JAMA Oncology reveals that the reasons behind this gap differ dramatically depending on where you look. Analyzing nearly 590,000 adults across Chinese and UK cohorts, researchers found that modifiable lifestyle factors — think smoking, heavy drinking, and chronic liver disease — explained 84% of the male-female cancer gap in China. In the UK, those same factors accounted for just 26% of the disparity, with obesity and diabetes playing a bigger role there.
The findings suggest that biology alone doesn't explain why men get cancer more often — culture, behavior, and environment matter enormously.
By the Numbers:
Why it matters: These findings challenge the idea that a single global cancer prevention strategy can close the sex gap. Clinicians and policymakers need population-specific approaches — targeting smoking and alcohol in China, and metabolic risk factors like obesity and diabetes in the UK — to make a real dent in cancer disparities.
