Obesity and Cancer

For decades, the Oncology community are trying to understand the role of obesity in cancer risk and its outcomes. It is estimated that a fifth of the world, almost 640 million people are obese. Obesity is the disproportionate body weight for height. It is expressed in terms of BMI (body mass Index). A BMI of more than 30 is considered obesity. Below are some of the important findings:

• Obesity is found to be strongly associated with developing and dying from several major illnesses, including heart disease, type 2 diabetes and cancer.
• It is quickly overtaking smoking as the preventable cause of cancer. Some 20% of new cases, and 17% of cancer-related deaths are attributable to obesity.
• Interesting to note is that, majority of adults remain unaware of the relationship between obesity and cancer.
• A landmark study of 9 lacs individuals, showed that obese people were upto 50-60% more likely to develop and die from cancer, compared to their normal counterparts.
• Researches are showing losing weight can help reduce co-morbidities, cancer risk, and early death. Let’s learn more about obesity.