Obese women have a fourfold higher risk of colon cancer

Obese women are four times more likely to develop colorectal cancer than normal weight women, according to new study findings reported here at the 69th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology.

Dr. Joseph Anderson of the State University of New York at Stony Brook said obesity was also associated with increased colorectal cancer risk in men, but “the increased risk in men was not significant.”Women with a body mass index (BMI) of 40 or higher had an OR of 5.2 for colorectal neoplasia while women with a BMI of less than 25 had an OR of 1.0 (p= 0.0001).The data are based on 2300 consecutive colonoscopies, which included 1050 women. The average age of patients was 57.4 years, he said. Additionally, 19.7% were current smokers and 29.5% were daily NSAID users.The results were adjusted for smoking, age, alcohol use and family history.”While obesity is associated with increased risk, it should be noted that the study does not account for fat distribution or visceral fat versus adipose fat,” Dr. Anderson explained. Fat distribution and fat type are factors that influence risk, he said.He added that the data were adjusted for hormone therapy use and “although HRT use dropped, it did not affect the risk of colon cancer.” Moreover, he said that data on diabetes — also common among obese individuals — are available, but have not yet been factored into the analysis.”The findings suggest that obesity may be a useful marker for identifying a high risk population for screening,” Dr. Anderson concluded.(Source: 69th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology: Reuters Health: M. Mary Conroy: Oncolink: November 2004.)