Cancer is a multifaceted process influenced by a complex relationship of genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors and remains a major global health concern. This review explores the intricate connections between environmental pollutants, industrial chemicals such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, benzene, asbestos, dioxins, and cancer, focusing on both their role in the initiation and progression of carcinogenesis and the potential for interventions to mitigate their effects. To understand the underlying mechanisms, the current review article summarized how these environmental factors interact with cellular pathways, including those involved in DNA damage repair, cell cycle regulation, and apoptosis. Key environmental risk factors such as air, radiation, and water pollution, exposure to hazardous industrial chemicals, and lifestyle-related toxins like tobacco are discussed in detail. A holistic strategy that involves reducing exposure to environmental carcinogens and advancing safer chemical therapies may hold the key to breaking the cancer cycle.？
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