500,000 new cancer cases a year linked to obesity
A study published in the medical journal The Lancet Oncology shows that the relationship between cancer and overweight affects more women than men, largely due to endometrial cancer and post-menopausal breast cancer. Rich countries are the most affected and almost two-thirds of these obesity-related cancers were registered in North America.
A study published in the medical journal The Lancet Oncology shows that the relationship between cancer and overweight affects more women than men, largely due to endometrial cancer and post-menopausal breast cancer. Rich countries are the most affected and almost two-thirds of these obesity-related cancers were registered in North America. A study published in the medical journal 'The Lancet Oncology' claims that wordlwide nearly half a million new cancer cases in adults can be attributed to overweight and obesity. The study was conducted by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the cancer agency of the World Health Organization Cancer (WHO), and claims that overweight and obesity have become a major risk, i.e. they are responsible for 3.6% (about 481,000 cases) of all new adult cancer cases in 2012. The analysis is based on data from a number of sources including the Globocan database regarding the occurance of cancer and cancer mortality in 184 countries. Rich countries are the most affected with almost two thirds (64%) of these obesity-related cancers occurring in North America (111,000 new cases, nearly a quarter of all new cases worldwide) and Europe.
Sub-Saharan Africa is the region that contributes the least to these figures (7,300 cancers). In Europe is especially Eastern Europe affected with 65,000 cases. The study shows that the relationship between cancer and obesity affects more women than men, largely due to endometrial cancer (lining of the uterus) and post-menopausal breast cancer. In men, excess weight is responsible for 1.9% (136,000) of new cancers in 2012. In women, this is 5.4% (345,000). Overweight is defined by a high body mass index (BMI: weight divided by height squared). A BMI of 25 or more indicates that the person is overweight, a BMI of 30 or higher means the person is obese. Cancers of the endometrium (lining of the uterus), colon, and post-menopausal breast cancer yearly account for nearly three-quarters (73%) of all new cases of obesity-related cancers in women. In men, cancers of the kidney and colon account for two-thirds (66%). According to the authors of the study, a quarter of the cancers related to overweight and obesity - worldwide more than 100,000 cases - could have been avoided if the concerned populations had simply kept their average weight from 30 years. According to WHO, the number of people who suffer from obesity has doubled since 1980. Overweight affects 1.4 billion people over 20 years old and of them more than 200 million men and nearly 300 million women are obese.