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Obesity / Weight Loss Story

Obesity and GI Cancer Risk

There are two new studies out that show that obesity is more than a heart disease risk, that obesity and cancer are also related. Specifically the latest research shows that being overweight raises the risk for colon cancer and esophageal cancer. It's hard to miss the warnings about the dangers of obesity- an increased risk of diabetes and heart disease, and now cancer.

Researchers at Stony Brook University found a direct correlation between body mass index--an index of fatness--.and the risk of colorectal cancer among women with no symptoms who underwent colonoscopies. Dr. Mitchell Roslin, Chief of the Obesity Program at Lenox Hill Hospital, says, "Obesity affects every system in every part of the body, in ways that we know of and even in ways that we can't predict." The researchers looked at patients who had large polyps, or frank colon cancer. Those women who were extremely obese were more than five times as likely to have a significant cancerous or precancerous growth compared to women with a BMI of 25 or less, a normal value.

The finding though, was not seen in men. And why obesity can cause colon cancer is not clear. "When you have caloric excess those calories need to be stored, that creates a whole chemical cascade to store those calories and the side effect may be an increase in the rate of cancer." states Dr. Roslin.

Another study shows that obesity is also a risk factor for cancer of the esophagus. Heartburn or acid regurgitation affected 75% of severely obese patients studied. Many experienced difficulty swallowing and a third experienced asthma symptoms. These are all symptoms of acid reflux. And acid reflux causes cancer. The authors found that the heaviest patients were 3.5 times more likely to develop esophageal adenocarcinoma than patients in the lowest weight group. "Esophageal cancer used to be a disease that we saw in underweight, alcoholic, cigarette smoking individuals. It was very prevalent in poor communities, and not considered a disease of the wealthy and middle class. The major reason is because of the increase of reflux and probably the most significant reason for the increase of reflux is an increase of our abdominal girth." Dr. Roslin says. According to the American Cancer Society, between 1970 and 2000, the incidence of adenocarcinoma of the esophagus increased seven-fold in the United States, very likely an indication that obesity and cancer may be very closely linked.

For more information on obesity and cancer, Click here.

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