Inuit face higher risk of cancer due to high smoking rates, low food security: Cancer Care Ontario

A report by Cancer Care Ontario and Tungasuvvingat Inuit shows that cancer risk factors are more common among Inuit in Ontario and elsewhere in Canada compared to non-Aboriginal Ontarians. The report estimates cancer risk and screening behaviours among Inuit living in and outside Inuit Nunangat (which includes parts of Northern coastal Labrador, Northern Quebec, the territory of Nunavut and the western edge of the Northwest Territories) and in Ontario. Among the findings:

• There is a high prevalence of smoking and low prevalence of household food security among Inuit compared to non-Aboriginal Ontarians;
• Nearly three-quarters of Inuit living in Nunangat and about one-third of Inuit in Ontario were current smokers compared to 23% of non-Aboriginal Ontarians;
• Two-thirds of Inuit in Ontario reported living in a food-secure household, which is significantly less than non-Aboriginal respondents in Ontario (94%);
• A higher proportion of Inuit living in Nunangat were overdue for colorectal cancer screening (72% of men, 66% of women) than non-Aboriginal Ontarians (43% of men, 41% of women).; and
• Generally, the pattern of cancer risk for Inuit living in Ontario was similar to Inuit living outside Inuit Nunangat more broadly, with a higher proportion of current smoking overall and a lower prevalence of food-secure households than the non-Aboriginal population.

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New report homes in on cancer risks for Inuit in the South - Nunatsiaq News