Yet cancer risks have not increased. We are living longer, and the risk of death from cancer is decreasing for the population as a whole. Major reasons for our longer lives include greater affluence and the opportunities created by technological change. The new risks we accept usually replace even greater risks left behind. Automobile travel is dangerous, but mile for mile it is much safer than travel on horseback.
People die each year in spectacular airplane crashes, but airplanes are far safer than automobiles.
It should not be surprising to learn, then, that richer societies are safer than poorer ones. People in rich societies, whatever their income level, live longer, healthier lives than do those in societies with simpler lifestyles. The benefits of greater income and wealth, including safer travel and safer homes, far outweigh the risks of economic development and technological change. Yet all economic and technological progress requires that human beings take risks. It is precisely because our ancestors took risks that we enjoy healthier, longer lives than they did.