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Komi Afetse

Chip Douglas
UWRT-1102
21 October 2016
Can cancer be prevented?
Cancer. who.int. WHO 2016, February 2015. Web. 12 October 2016.
This article was published by the World Health Organization (WHO) in February 2015. It
is a collection of data about cancer. This article consists of four main sections. First of all, it
presents global statistics about cancer. Then, it explains what cancer is and why cancer is a
problem. It also talks about the risk factors of cancer (what cause cancer). And finally, the article
introduces the prevention strategies against cancer. According to this article, cancer is a problem
because it is a principal cause of deaths in the world, approximately ten millions of deaths each
year. It is a disease which can be prevented by avoiding the risk factors (tobacco use, alcohol
consumption, unhealthy diet, et cetera). The objective of this article is to inform everyone about
the realities of cancer.
I found this article very useful. In point of fact, the key facts about cancer in this article
will really help me in the redaction of my project. The risk factors of cancers and the prevention
strategies listed in this article were also very helpful. Thanks to these information, now I know
why some people argue that there is a possibility to prevent cancer. However, this article is not
very detailed. All information appears as a list without enough details. In this way, the risk
factors and the prevention strategies are described briefly. This article is a credible source
because, first and foremost, it was published by the World Health Organization (WHO).

Furthermore, almost every statement in this article is supported by statistics, and these statements
are based on facts instead of opinions.

Anand, Preetha, et al. Cancer is a Preventable Disease that Requires Major Lifestyle
Changes. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S.
National Library of Medicine. 2008 July 15. Web. 12 October 2016.

This article explains why cancer can be prevented and how it can be avoided. This article
can be divided into two principal sections. First and foremost, the article talks about the different
risks factors of cancer. It explains why these risks factors are responsible for cancer. Secondly,
the article provides information about how cancer can be prevented. The article is addressed to
the general audience (everyone). According to the authors, cancer is a disease which can be
prevented by changing our way of life. They showed that ninety to ninety-five percent of the
causes of cancer are linked to the lifestyle. In this way, by stopping smoking, consuming alcohol
moderately, and having a healthy diet, we can prevent cancer. However, the article also said that
five to ten percent of the causes of cancer are genetic defects. The genetic defect is a matter of
luck, something on which we dont have any control.
This article is a credible source. In fact, all the information presented in the article are
based on facts. The authors used statistical data and information about cancer in an effective way
to support their thesis (cancer is a disease which can be prevented by modifying some lifestyle
habits). Also, the domain of the website is .gov. In other words, this source comes from a
governmental organization, which is the U.S. National Library of Medicine. This article was very
useful. Each statement is well organized, very detailed, and supported with statistical data. The

sections that were more helpful for me are the prevention of cancer section and the part that talks
about the risk factors of cancer. Indeed, one of my questions is how risk factors are responsible
for cancer? and these sections provide a good explanation of how the risk factors are responsible
for cancer and why we can prevent cancer. Although this article is addressed to everyone, the
understanding of some terms necessitates a particular background in biological science.

Carroll Aaron E. Helpless to Prevent Cancer? Actually, Quite a Bit Is in Your Control.
nytimes.com. 2016 The New York Times Company, July 5,2016. Web. 12 October
2016.

This article provides information about the fact that cancer is a preventable disease. The
article is a sort of critique of the idea that cancer is due to bad luck. According to the author,
most cancers can be prevented, and by changing their behaviors, people have the capacity to
make sure that cancer never happens. The article supports the idea that prevention is not only the
most efficient way but also the cheaper alternative. This article is addressed to the general public.
Through this article, the author is convincing people that cancer is not a matter of bad luck, and
there is no reason to be afraid of it. However, the author recognized that luck plays a certain role
in the disease. He considers that cancer is mostly due to peoples behaviors. In point of fact,
cancer is a disease that can be avoided by controlling the four principal risks factors, which are
tobacco, drinking, obesity, and physical exercise. The article also explains that the prevention of
cancer is not something that is too burdensome, but it is a fair and an achievable objective.
One of the reasons that makes this source credible is that the author is a physician. In this
way, he certainly knows what he is talking about. Also, the author used facts rather than opinions

to support his point of view. I found this article very helpful because it is a critique of the idea
that cancer is due to bad luck. The most helpful piece of information in this article is that more
than seventy percent of the common cancers can be prevented by having four healthy habits, and
the prevention of the disease is not constraining at all, it is a reasonable and an achievable goal.
Even though this article refutes the idea of bad luck when talking about cancer, it assumes that
approximately thirty percent of common cancers are due to bad luck.

Tomasetti, and Bert Vogelstein. Variation in cancer risk among tissues can be explained by
the number of stem cell divisions. Science .02 January 2015. science.scienemag.org.
Web. 12 October 2016.

This article appeared in the magazine Science, at the beginning of the year 2015. After
theirs researches on cancer, Tomasetti and Vogelstein presented their results in this article. The
article provides information about the correlation between the number of times cell divide and
the development of cancer. This article shows that there is a positive correlation between the
number of times cell divide and the development of cancer. In another way, more cells divide,
the higher the risk of getting cancer is. This correlation is called bad luck. According to the
authors, the bad luck justifies most of cancer than do the other risk factors such as
environmental factors, smoking, drinking, etc. Also, the article specifies that only stem cells
have the ability to initiate a tumor. This article is addressed to the scientific community. In point
of fact, there is a lot of terms in this article, which some people could not understand.
One thing that makes this source credible is that it is a scientific report written by two
researchers at John Hopkins University. Furthermore, this source is reliable because the domain

of the website is .org. In this way, the article comes from a trustful organization which is AAAS
(American Association for the Advancement of Science). Another reason which makes this
source credible is that it is based on facts instead of opinions. This article was particularly useful.
In point of fact, this article is the scientific proof of the theory: cancer is due to bad luck, there
is nothing people could do about that fact. The most helpful piece of information was the idea
that most cancers - approximately two-thirds- are related to stem cells division rate. It shows why
cancer may not be prevented. However, the article was the target of many critics from the
scientific community.

Flam Faye. Scientists Stand By Claim That 'Bad Luck' Causes Most Cancer. forbes.com.
2016 Forbes Media LLC. 05 February 2015. Web. 12 October 2016.

This article defends the theory of the scientists Tomasetti and Vogelstein about cancer.
According to Tomasetti and Vogelstein, cancer is a matter of bad luck. This theory has been the
object of many negative critics from the scientific community. This article can be separated into
three principal parts. First of all, the author presents the theory of Tomasetti and Vogelstein and
shows that they never denied the fact environmental or lifestyle factors play a significant role in
the apparition of some types of cancer. Secondly, the article introduces some critics addressed to
Tomasetti and Vogelstein. Also, the article explains that it will be an illusion to believe that if
people follow the prevention strategies, they will not get cancer. Finally, based on other scientists
claims, the article supports Tomasetti and Vogelstein theory. As stated in this article, if human
being apparition on this earth is purely due to chance, why not believe that cancer also is a matter
of luck. This article is addressed to the general public.

This article was useful to me because it presents arguments in favor of the idea: cancer
is due to bad luck. The most useful piece of information was the argumentation against some
critics of Tomasetti and Vogelstein (scientists that proposed the idea of cancer and bad luck).
This article helped me better understand why cancer could be due to bad luck. The credibility of
this article lies in the fact that it is published by Forbes. In fact, Forbes is a trustful American
magazine. Also, the author used data from different scientists to support her opinion.
Furthermore, the author provided information about the different sources; she utilized in the
article.

Reflection
This annotated bibliography is the first one I wrote. I never did an assignment like that
before. This assignment was not difficult, but I cant say that it was easy. In other words, certain
things were easy and others were challenging. Indeed, the analysis of all sources was a little bit
challenging, but the summary of sources was easy. The tools that I used for my research are
essentially google, google scholar, and ProQuest. However, all the sources I will use in my
project will come from google and google scholar. During my research, I found a lot of sources
that talk about cancer. I did not spend a lot of time researching sources related to my topic.
Because most of the sources were talking about a possible prevention of cancer, I chose as my
initial inquiry question: how to prevent cancer? Nevertheless, when I came across a research
report written by two scientists at John Hopkins University, my opinion about the topic changed.
In point of fact, the researchers of John Hopkins university demonstrated that two-thirds of
cancers are due to bad luck. Then, I focused my research on other sources that talks about cancer
and bad luck. In this way, I modified my initial inquiry question into: can cancer be prevented?

Articles from national and international health organizations and scholarly articles were the most
useful and credible. The analysis of all the sources helps me in better understanding my topic.
For the previous research papers that I did, I just have to pick in the sources, the information that
I need. However, this research paper is different. In order to do this assignment, I had to use
analytical skills and critical thinking. In another way, I had to analyze and evaluate all the
sources. These skills are crucial to my future research because they are the basis of logic and
comprehension.

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