Higher BMI Linked to Increased Risk for Cancer

Increasing body mass index parallels risk for many cancers, according to a BMJ study released online.
British researchers examined data from the Million Women Study collected between 1996 and 2001. Some 1.2 million women, aged 50 to 64 at recruitment, were followed in national databases for an average of 5.4 years for cancer incidence and 7.0 years for mortality. By study's end, the researchers had found a significant increase in cancer risk per 10-unit increase in BMI for several cancers.
For example, in analyses adjusted for potential confounders, increasing BMI was associated with a relative risk for endometrial cancer of 2.89; for esophageal adenocarcinoma, 2.38; for kidney cancer, 1.53; for leukemia, 1.50; and for postmenopausal breast cancer, 1.40. For endometrial and esophageal cancers, the authors estimate that half the cases in postmenopausal women were due to overweight or obesity.
An editorialist notes that likely mechanisms for the association are the metabolic and endocrine effects of obesity.