Environmental prophylaxis as one of the main factors in cancer control

Health prophylaxis and environmental diagnosis are indispensable activities for the health of the populations. The human population should be protected against neoplasms by: 1) environmental diagnosis of carcinogens and their elimination and reduction in the occupational environment and urban and rural areas; 2) awareness of the carcinogenic factors: aetiological, pathogenic routes of absorption, exposure time and individual as well as group-related means of environmental prevention; 3) early diagnosis of disease and early beginning of treatment according to specialist medical indications. The first prodromal signs make possible identification, differentiation and evaluation of the degree of health risk; 4) oncological health education concerning the harmful carcinogenic factors, physical, chemical or biological, in the environment. Programmes of health education should be realized and the population should be instructed on the principles of prevention of malignant neoplasms, especially in schools and production plants. A higher level of awareness means a development and progress in human health protection. The outlining of the directions of these actions is important not only for an improvement of the health quality of the environment in Poland but will serve also as a directive for similar programmes in other European and non-European countries. The programme of cancer control should be based on an ever greater level of advanced environmental prophylaxis and diagnosis. This is indicated ever more since prophylactic medicine is less costly than therapeutic and surgical interventions in cases of cancer causing 90,000 of deaths in our country. The medicine to come will include a higher level of health education of the populations in the prophylactic measures and a higher level of knowledge on the environmental aspects of health and disease of mankind.