As the world, this month, continues the awareness drive on breast cancer – the commonest cancers among women, experts have found that one sure way to protect against various cancers is to lose weight. This is because obesity has been identified as a risk factor for several cancers, including cancers of the colon, breast, kidney, oesophagus, gallbladder and endometrium.
A new study, found 12,000 new cancers associated with being overweight.
According to the study, published in the Journal Lancet, the risk of a person being diagnosed with cancer increases with the increase in waist line. The study analyzed data relating to more than five million people to establish the links between obesity and cancer.
The researchers found that excess fat not only increases the risk of some breast cancers, it also renders treatment less effective.
They also found that for every five point increase in a person’s body mass index (BMI), they could be 62 percent more likely to be diagnosed with cancer of the uterus, and 25 percent more likely to develop kidney cancer. On how the link between weight gain and cancer risk was established, weight-loss expert, Sally Norton, explained that excess fat produces hormones which causes some of the cancer cells to grow.
“One of the ways being overweight increases the risk of cancer lies in the fact that excess fat doesn’t just sit around your middle doing nothing, it produces hormones, one of which is oestrogen,” she said.
Experts found that the female hormone oestrogen, can sometimes stimulate breast cancer cells and cause them to grow. According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer may rise slightly with the amount of oestrogen her body is exposed to. “For example, if you started your periods at a young age and experienced menopause at a late age, you’ll have been exposed to oestrogen over a longer period of time. In the same way, not having children, or having children later in life, may slightly increase your risk of developing breast cancer because your exposure to oestrogen is uninterrupted by pregnancy”, it says.
According to the study, fat is the main source of oestrogen, especially after menopause, when the ovaries have stopped producing hormones. “This means that postmenopausal women who are overweight are at a greater risk of tumours that are stimulated by oestrogen. As many as 41 percent of womb cancers may be attributable to obesity,” Norton said.
In the case of males, the study found that being obese increases the chance of colon and liver cancer. “It is more likely in people with a higher waist to hip ratio and may be associated with increased insulin levels, seen in type 2 diabetes,” Dr. Norton said.
She points to a recent study, in mice, which found reducing food intake may reduce the risk of breast cancer spreading. The research has prompted an ongoing trial into nutritional advice and weight-loss in women undergoing breast cancer treatment.
A related study emphasized that prevention of weight gains, not weight loss will guide against cancer. They found that overweight and obese women run an increased risk of breast cancer that is not diminished by weight loss.
The study published in JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association), had 67,000 women in the United States followed for a median of 13 years.
The study, by Marian L Neuhouser of the Fred Hutchison Cancer Research Center in Seattle and colleagues, found that a woman’s risk of breast cancer increased if she gained more than 5 per cent of her bodyweight, even if she was initially of normal weight (a BMI of 18.5 to 25).
“But there was no change in risk for women who lost weight. The risk rises with the more excess weight women carry. Those who are obese, with a BMI over 30, have a 58 per cent higher chance of breast cancer than those of normal weight. Deaths among the most obese were also twice those among those of normal weight”, they said.
In a commentary in the journal, Clifford Hudis of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, and Andrew Dannenberg of the Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, note that the National Cancer Institute recently suggested obesity will replace tobacco as the single biggest modifiable risk factor for cancer. Katie Goates from Breast Cancer Campaign and Breakthrough Breast Cancer said: “Limiting the amount of alcohol you drink and being regularly physically active can help to keep BMI down and lower breast cancer risk”, she said.
Meanwhile, The World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) says that the foods we eat can affect our risk of developing certain types of cancer. It says that high-energy and high-fat diets can lead to obesity which will increase the risk of some cancers.
It recommends that people avoid eating processed meat and eat more of diet rich in fibre, vegetables and fruits.
By: Franka Osakwe
National Mirror News
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