By Dr Albert Lim Kok Hooi

THIS year, 300,000 girls of ages 12 and 13 in the United Kingdom (UK) will be offered vaccination against the human papilloma virus which causes most cases of cancer of the cervix. It is estimated that 400 lives will be saved with this government programme of mass vaccination.

Some bureaucrat in the National Health Service of the UK must have done her math and found the programme cost-effective. She is probably right. What do our bureaucrats think? To them, I say, please do your math: cancer of the cervix is more prevalent in Malaysia than in the UK and we still do not have a mass vaccination programme.

How often can cancer be prevented? Truth be told, not often. But where we can prevent it, we should.

Vaccination against hepatitis B for newborn and children has been available in Malaysia for the last 2 - decades. This is another cancer preventive vaccination as hepatitis B can lead to liver cancer. Unfortunately, the programme has not been too successful. Even when the children are vaccinated, the parents often do not take their children for the booster injections.

We love our children almost without exception. This is an expression of the Darwinian imperative. Whatever we can do to prevent cancer in them, we will.

It also makes a lot of scientific sense. The environmental factors that act on our genes to cause cancer act over time, say 10 to 20 years. The best time to intervene is the first 30 years of life before the first cell turns cancerous.

Let me give you five simple steps to lower the risk of your child having cancer in her lifetime.

>If your precious little darling is a girl, get her vaccinated against the human papilloma virus to reduce her chances of getting cancer of the cervix. Two brands of vaccination are available in Malaysia.

>Make sure your child is vaccinated against hepatitis B and don't forget that booster!

>The third message will probably prove the toughest act to follow. Do not force-feed your baby and do not carbo-load your child. The Asian/ African/Mediterranean/Jewish/Latin American culture of eating/ generosity/hospitality is ingrained. Nevertheless, we must ensure that our children are not even marginally overweight, let alone obese.

The chubby, bouncy, happy child may grow up to be an obese, obtunded, sickly adult. Obesity has been clearly established as one of the most preventable causes of cancer.

>Start your pre-school child on an exercise programme. Encourage her to participate in any safe, physical activity she enjoys.

>Educate your children about the dangers of smoking when they are at the pre-school and primary school age. It is never early enough. Do not make smoking "taboo" as this is the best way to get them started.

That's it. It is as simple as it sounds. But unfortunately, not as simple as it does.

The behaviour and lifestyle of parents have a powerful influence on their children. The bit about vaccination (to prevent cancer of the cervix and cancer of the liver) is the easy bit. It just takes money and a little effort.

How many of us parents follow a healthy diet? Most of the time we eat healthily following a heart attack or a diagnosis of diabetes or cancer. How many of us exercise as we should? It is the same story here.

(Page 1 of 2)I assure you that 90 per cent of those who huff and puff in our parks each morning and evening do so following a major illness. A brisk walk of at least 20 minutes for five days a week is surely a small investment in terms of time. Unfortunately we lead such "busy" lives that even 100 out of 10,080 minutes a week just cannot materialise.

I get a couple of phone calls a week from 40, 50, 60 something year olds asking me what they can do for themselves to prevent cancer. To be honest, precious little. Some of us in this age group may already have undetectable pre-cancer as the "incubation period" of cancer is anything from 10 to 20 years.

In other words, the seeds of cancer have already been sown in some people way before they reach young middle age.

I don't go into any lengthy scientific discourse with the callers. I usually mumble something like "Please undergo a yearly mammogram", "Have you done your PAP smear?", "Please stop smoking if you have not done so already" and "Eat well and lose weight". I wonder what big difference all this would make if they had been indulgent and slothful all their lives.

I only wish these callers would ask me how to prevent cancer in their progeny. That would have been a far more useful exercise.

> Dr Albert Lim Kok Hooi is a consultant oncologist. For further information, e-mail starhealth@thestar.com.my. The views expressed are those of the writer and readers are advised to always consult expert advice before undertaking any changes to their lifestyles. The Star and AsiaOne do not give any warranty on accuracy, completeness, functionality, usefulness or other assurances as to the content appearing in this column. The Star disclaims all responsibility for any losses, damage to property or personal injury suffered directly or indirectly from reliance on such information.

The Star/Asia News Network

This story was first published in The Star on Nov 16, 2008.

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Protect yourself against cervical cancer

Things you should know about cervical cancer

Push to cut liver cancer risk