The Maine Cancer Registry reports that Bangor has the highest cancer rates in the state of Maine. In 2019, the rate of cancer cases in Bangor was 538.5 per 100,000 people, after adjusting for age. This is higher than the average rate of 478.5 per 100,000 people in the state.
There are several reasons why cancer rates are higher in Bangor. One reason is that the city has a lot of older adults, who are more likely to get cancer. Another reason is that Bangor has a higher smoking rate compared to the average rate in the state. Smoking is a major reason why people get lung cancer. It can also cause other types of cancer like bladder cancer, colorectal cancer, and esophageal cancer.
Advanced age
As people get older, their cells are more prone to developing mutations that can cause cancer. Cells divide less frequently as they get older, and when they do divide, they are more prone to making errors. As we get older, our immune system becomes weaker, which makes it harder for our body to fight against cancer cells.
Bangor has many older adults living there. The median age in Bangor was 42.2 in 2020, which is lower than the state median of 44.6. This means that in Bangor, 50% of the population was older than 42, while in the entire state of Maine, 50% of the population was older than 44.6.
Smoking
Smoking is a major reason why people get cancer, such as lung cancer, bladder cancer, colorectal cancer, and esophageal cancer. Cigarette smoke has more than 7,000 chemicals, including hundreds that are harmful and at least 70 that can cause cancer.
In Bangor, more people smoke compared to the average rate in the state. In 2019, 18.2% of adults in Bangor smoked, which was higher than the state average of 16.5%. This means that approximately 20% of adults in Bangor smoke cigarettes, while around 17% of adults in Maine smoke cigarettes.
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Aside from smoking, there are several other factors that might contribute to the higher cancer rates in Bangor. These factors include:
- Environmental exposures: Bangor is close to several industrial facilities that release pollutants into the air and water. These harmful substances can make it more likely for someone to develop certain types of cancer, like lung cancer and bladder cancer.
- Diet and nutrition: If you eat a lot of processed foods and sugary drinks, you have a higher chance of getting certain types of cancer like colorectal cancer and breast cancer.
- Obesity: Being overweight increases the chances of developing certain types of cancer, such as breast cancer, colorectal cancer, and endometrial cancer. Bangor has more people who are obese compared to the average for the entire state. In 2019, the percentage of people who were obese in Bangor was 31.7%, which is higher than the average percentage of 29.4% for the entire state.
- Lack of access to healthcare: When people cannot get regular healthcare screenings, they are more likely to be diagnosed with cancer at a later stage. This makes it harder to treat the cancer. In Bangor, more people do not have health insurance compared to the average rate for the whole state. In 2019, 8.2% of people in Bangor did not have health insurance, which was slightly higher than the state average of 7.0%.
Cancer is a complicated disease with many different causes. Cancer rates in Bangor are higher than in other parts of Maine, but there isn’t just one reason for this. However, the factors mentioned above are all known to increase the risk of getting cancer.
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