Arushi Bidhuri
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Being Obese Or Overweight Can Raise The Risk Of Colorectal Cancer In Adults
The colon or the rectum is where colorectal cancer begins. When cells in the body begin to grow out of control, cancer develops. Depending on where they begin, these malignancies are referred to as colon cancer or rectal cancer. Because they share many characteristics, colon cancer and rectal cancer are sometimes lumped together. While there are many risk factors that could elevate the risk of developing colorectal cancer, being obese or overweight are found to be a dominant factor.
Obese and overweight adults who lose weight may have a lower risk of getting colorectal adenoma, a benign growth or polyp in the colon or rectum that can evolve to colorectal cancer, according to a new study published in JNCI Cancer Spectrum by Oxford University Press. Colorectal cancer is the third most frequent cancer in men and women in the United States and the third greatest cause of cancer death.
Obesity has increased in the United States and around the world in the last 30 years, leading to an increase in the development of several chronic diseases. Obesity has long been recognised as a risk factor for colorectal adenoma and cancer.
Overweight and obese patients are frequently advised by doctors to lose weight. Although weight loss is known to have some health benefits, the question of whether it can lessen the risk of colorectal adenoma has remained unanswered. Most of the research has only looked at colorectal adenoma risk in connection to obesity or BMI at a single time point, with fewer examining the role of weight change.
The prostate, lung, colorectal, and ovarian cancer screening trial used self-reported weight data to investigate weight change (including both weight gain and weight loss) during three periods of adulthood in association with colorectal adenoma. From 1993 to 2001, the experiment enrolled 154,942 men and women in the United States, ranging in age from 55 to 74, to assess the efficacy of various screening procedures in reducing death from various malignancies. Participants in the screening arm of the trial, who got a colorectal cancer screening test at baseline and again 3 or 5 years later were thoroughly examined.
Weight loss in adulthood (defined as a loss greater than or equal to 1.1 pounds per 5 years) was associated with a 46 per cent lower incidence of colorectal adenoma, according to the researchers. This was especially true for those who were overweight or obese at the beginning. The researchers also discovered that weight gain in adulthood was linked to an increased risk of adenoma, especially if the gain was higher than 6.6 pounds in 5 years. The findings for weight loss and the increase appeared to be more pronounced in males than in women. The findings point to the relevance of maintaining a healthy weight throughout adulthood in preventing colorectal adenoma.
"Our findings suggest that avoiding weight gain in adulthood may help lower someone's chance of developing a pre-cancerous growth called a colorectal adenoma, which may, in turn, reduce the risk of developing colorectal cancer," said the study's senior author, Kathryn Hughes Barry.
(With inputs from agencies)