30 May 2011 | General, BMBS
Where there is smoke...
Tobacco kills one person every six seconds. Out of 6 million deaths a year, 600 000 are non-smokers who died from exposure to tobacco smoke. 31 May 2011, the World Health Organization's No Tobacco Day, is an excellent opportunity for smokers to reduce their risk of becoming a sad statistic.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), there are more than 4 000 chemicals in tobacco smoke, of which at least 250 are known to be harmful and more than 50 are known to cause cancer. In adults, second-hand smoke causes serious cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, including coronary heart disease and lung cancer.
If you stop smoking today and avoid exposure to second-hand smoke you may prevent your cells from damage.
Advancing the knowledge on mechanisms that protect healthy cells from transforming into cancer cells is the objective of a COST Action BM0703 'Cancer and Control of Genomic Integrity (CANGENIN)' which focuses on genomic integrity and epigenetics and their dysregulation in cancer. The COST Action which is due to end in 2012 strives to provide new research models and tools to understand the molecular basis of cancer progression. It is expected to lead to better prevention, diagnosis and therapy.
