[Current epidemiological overview of the most frequent cancers in Spain. Implications for nursing care]

This article is to describe the epidemiological situation of cancer and prevention strategies, particularly related to the work of nurses (primary prevention and early detection), focusing primarily on lung cancer (LC), breast (BC) and colorectal (CRC). 98,046 cancer deaths occurred in Spain in 2006, which is the leading cause of death in our country. The main action of prevention for the LC is based on smoking cessation, the main risk factor (relative risk (RR) from 10 to 30) beside radon and asbestos exposures. Basically the prevention for the BC is based on early detection, mammography remains the ultimate test because it reduces mortality, and must be done along period between 50 and 70 years old with a two-year interval. CRC mortality is reduced by 16% due to early detection test based on fecal occult blood (TsOH), but it's necessary to insist on changes in lifestyle (diet and exercise) as primary prevention strategies, and in breast cancer too. One of the most effective ways to reduce the impact of cancer today is the prevention, which is carried out mainly by the nurses.