The decisions that children make now, while they are still young, can help keep them healthy for the rest of their lives. It is important for children to know that despite what tobacco companies may imply in their ads, most people do not smoke and don't want to smoke. In fact, the vast majority of smokers wish they could stop. Only about 1 in 4 adults use tobacco products regularly and only 1 in 10 teenagers are regular smokers. Cancer is the name we give to a group of diseases in which abnormal cells grow in an uncontrolled manner.
Cancer is a potentially serious disease.
Tumors can become quite large, interfering with the ability of nearby organs or tissues to function. If the cancer cells spread to other parts of the body, new tumors may grow and cause further damage. Cancer is most common among older adults. This is because the kind of cell damage that leads to cancer is most likely to occur over long periods of time. As many as half of all cancers can be prevented by practicing certain good health behaviors.