General, central obesities linked to higher risk of colorectal cancer Premium
The Hindu
While researchers have known that obese individuals have a higher risk of colorectal cancer, a new study reports evidence not all obese people are at equal risk. Instead, the risk seems to be higher for those who are “generally obese” and those who are “tall and centrally obese”.
Obesity rates are rising worldwide. In India, a 2022 study in The Lancet estimated the percentage of obese women and men to be 9.8% and 5.4% respectively. Along with higher risk of heart disease and diabetes, obesity has been linked to a higher susceptibility to colorectal cancer (CRC), among others.
CRC refers to cancers of the colon or the rectum. The CRC incidence is relatively low in India, but the percentage of people who are alive five years after a CRC diagnosis is reportedly under 40% — one of the lowest in the world. According to a 2017 study in the Indian Journal of Surgical Oncology, CRC patients in India are generally young and present more frequently with advanced stages of the disease.
While researchers have known that obese individuals have a higher risk of CRC, a Science Advances study published in April 2024 reported evidence that not all obese people are at equal risk.
Instead, the risk seems to be higher for those who are “generally obese” and those who are “tall [and] centrally obese”.
The study argued that different genetic pathways may explain how CRC is caused in different obesity subtypes.
“The study highlights the importance of considering body shapes as compared to BMI for risk assessment” of CRC,” Dhruvi Shah, a doctoral candidate at the University of Bonn studying the association between obesity and influenza, said. Ms. Shah has studied the relationship between obesity and pancreatic cancer.
Data from the study could also be used to develop new screening tools for CRC in the future, she added.
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