Compare this map to the obesity map.
Obesity Could Become Top Cause Of Cancer
LONDON - Being fat could become the leading cause of cancer in women in Western countries in the coming years, European researchers said Thursday.
Being overweight or obese accounts for up to 8 percent of cancers in Europe. Experts said that figure is poised to increase substantially as the obesity epidemic continues, and as major causes of cancer, such as smoking and hormone replacement therapy for menopausal women, drop dramatically.
"Obesity is catching up at a rate that makes it possible it could become the biggest attributable cause of cancer in women within the next decade," said Andrew Renehan, a cancer expert at the University of Manchester. Renehan presented his findings to a joint meeting of the European Cancer Organisation and the European Society for Medical Oncology in Berlin on Thursday.
This doesn't go well with the news that Obesity and Leukemia: Fat May Offer Sanctuary to Cancer Cells
In leukemia patients, excess fatty tissue allows cancerous cells to avoid destruction by chemotherapy drugs, a study in mice suggests.
The findings, combined with tests on human leukemia cell lines, may explain why previous studies have shown that obese children and adults with leukemia are more apt to relapse than their leaner counterparts, scientists report in the Oct. 1 Cancer Research.
Other research has hinted that obesity may play a role in other cancers as well, says Steven Mittelman, an endocrinologist at the University of Southern California and Childrens Hospital Los Angeles.
Too much fat may offer a safe haven for leukemia cells during chemotherapy, says David Hockenbery, a physician at the University of Washington and the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle. "This study provides striking experimental support for the clinical observation that obesity is associated with a poor prognosis in multiple cancers." |
