06 Oct 13 types of cancer associated with obesity
Obesity (BMI of 30 or greater) is linked with a higher risk of developing 13 different types of cancer. There is evidence to support a strong relationship between weight loss and cancer risk reduction. Obese individuals who have undergone bariatric surgery to aid in weight loss appear to have a lower risk of obesity-related cancers when compared to obese individuals who have not had bariatric surgery

- Endometrial cancer (cancer of the lining of the uterus): Obese/overweight women are 2 to 4 times as likely to develop endometrial cancer. Extremely
obese women are about 7 times as likely to develop this cancer. The risk increases with weight gain in adulthood, particularly among women who have never used menopausal hormone therapy. - Esophageal adenocarcinoma (cancer of the esophagus): People who are overweight/obese are 2 times as likely to develop this cancer and people who are extremely obese are more than four times as likely.
- Gastric cardia cancer (cancer of the upper part of the stomach): People who are obese are nearly 2 times as likely as a person with a normal weight to develop cancer in the part of the stomach that is closest to the esophagus.
- Liver cancer: People who are overweight or obese are up to 2 times as likely as a person of normal weight to develop liver cancer. The association between overweight/obesity and liver cancer is stronger in men than in women.
- Kidney cancer: Individuals who are overweight/obese are nearly 2 times as likely as someone of a normal weight to develop renal cell cancer, the most common form of kidney cancer.
- Multiple myeloma (A cancer of plasma cells): Compared with individuals with a normal weight, overweight/obese individuals have a slight (10-20%) increase in the risk of developing multiple myeloma.
- Meningioma: The risk of this slow-growing brain tumor that arises in the membranes surrounding the brain and the spinal cord is increased by about 20% in individuals who are overweight and 50% in people who are obese.
- Pancreatic cancer: People who are overweight/obese are about 1.5 times as likely to develop pancreatic cancer as normal-weight people.
- Colorectal cancer: People who are obese are about 30% more likely to develop colorectal cancer than an individual with a normal weight. A higher BMI is associated with increased risks of colon and rectal cancers in both men and in women, but the increases are higher for men than women.
- Gallbladder cancer: People who are overweight have about a 20% increase in risk of gallbladder cancer, and people who are obese have a 60% increase in risk of gallbladder cancer with the risk increase being greater in women than men.
- Breast cancer: Many studies have shown that, in postmenopausal women, a higher BMI is associated with a modest increase in risk of breast cancer. Among postmenopausal women, those who are obese have a 20% to 40% increase in risk of developing breast cancer compared with women of a normal weight. The higher risks are seen mainly in women who have never used menopausal hormone therapy and for tumors that express hormone receptors. Obesity is also a risk factor for breast cancer in men.
- Ovarian cancer: Higher BMI is associated with a slight increase in the risk of ovarian cancer, particularly in women who have never used menopausal hormone therapy. For example, a 5-unit increase in BMI is associated with a 10% increase in risk among women who have never used menopausal hormone therapy.
- Thyroid cancer: Higher BMI (specifically, a 5-unit increase in BMI) is associated with a 10% increase in the risk of thyroid cancer.
To learn more about the link between obesity and cancer, and the associated research, check out: https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/causes-prevention/risk/obesity/obesity-fact-sheet
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