Obesity has been linked to a number of health problems, including Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, liver problems, and joint disorders. But many people may not know that the condition is also closely linked with cancer.
In one Research published in JAMAThe researchers provide the strongest evidence yet for a link between obesity and cancer, as well as the benefit of bariatric surgery in reducing the risk of developing or dying from cancer.
The trial involved more than 30,000 patients with obesity: some received bariatric surgery to lose weight, and some served as nonsurgical controls and received standard care for their obesity, Includes information on diet and exercise. The results showed that 10 years after surgery, people had a 32% lower risk of 15 common cancers and a 48% lower risk of dying from cancer compared with those who didn’t have weight loss surgery.
“What we observe here is a huge impact,” said Dr. Steven Nissen, a cardiologist at the Cleveland Clinic and senior author of the paper. “I think this powerful data will be available for quite some time to support another reason why weight loss is a really important public health intervention.”
Ali Aminian, director of the Institute of Metabolism and Disease at the Cleveland Clinic and first author of the study, says that for people with obesity to reduce their risk of developing or dying from cancer, they need to reduce an significant amounts of weight — more than most people can sustainably lose weight with diet and exercise alone. People in the study received one of two types of gastric bypass surgery between 2004 and 2017: 66% of the surgical group received a gastrectomy, in which the surgeon divided the stomach into two smaller pouches and moved one intestine to both segments, and 34% had gastrectomy, a procedure in which a surgeon removes 80% of the stomach, leaving a small piece the size of a banana. (Aminian says that since then, gastric bypass procedures have become more common in the U.S., accounting for 65% to 70% of vaginal surgeries.) These procedures can save people up to 20% off. 25% of their body weight, which the researchers say is the threshold to see benefits when it comes to cancer risk. (While Aminian and several other study authors have received funding from Medtronic, the company that makes devices for puffy surgery, the company is not involved in the JAMA research.)
“I want more primary care physicians to have serious conversations with their patients about the consequences of obesity and the resilience of obesity-related morbidity and mortality,” says Nissen. . “Primary care physicians can initiate conversations with their patients to review surgery and determine if they qualify.”
Obesity may affect cancer risk in a number of ways. Studies have shown that fat cells are not inert but very metabolically active. Aminians say they produce substances that contribute to hepatitis, “creating a toxic environment that can increase cancer risk.” Obesity can also contribute to increased hormones like estrogen, which have been linked to a higher risk of breast and uterine cancer in women. In fact, research found that endometrial cancer is one of the diseases most strongly associated with obesity, and that laminectomy reduces the risk of endometrial cancer by 53% – more than any other type of cancer analyzed in the study.
While the study found that surgery, and the significant weight loss associated with it, was associated with a significant reduction in cancer, both Nissen and Aminian concede that with nearly 42 percent of people in the U.S. now enough The standard is obesity, surgery is not a practical method. options for all of them. Not all are eligible for invasive surgery, which comes with significant risks as it involves rerouting the gastrointestinal tract. Diet and exercise alone generally do not lead to significant weight loss like the kind seen in the study, mainly because following the rigorous regimens required to continue losing weight is a challenge for everyone. People.
Several weight-loss drugs have recently been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to provide significant weight loss, similar to results achieved from surgery, but they are not yet widely used. as an anti-obesity tool. Nissen is currently leading a 15,000-patient study funded by Eli Lilly that produced one of the drugs, tirzepatide, which is approved to treat obesity in people with type 2 diabetes and has help them lose up to 25% of their body weight. Results from that study may provide additional confidence for primary care physicians to help their patients optimize weight loss strategies and help prevent health risks including cancer.
“A tool in the hands of the surgeon, and now there are tools in the hands of the non-surgery [in the form of drug treatments,]”Nissen said. “Between these two strategies, I really think there might be light at the end of the tunnel.”
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