THE endometrial cancer – cancer of the body of the uterusnot to be confused with cervical cancer – is the most common gynecological cancer in high-income countries and the more common in the female reproductive system. And being overweight could almost double the risk of developing the disease in women, according to the results of a study published in the journal BMC Medicine this April 19, 2022.
For every five units of body mass index, the risk would even increase by 88%. This increase of five BMI units corresponds to the difference between the category overweight (from 25 to 29.9) and obese (from 30 and above).
To arrive at these results, scientists at the University of Bristol examined DNA samples from around 120,000 women around the world, of whom around 13,000 had uterine cancer. Women who had been overweight all their life showed, in particular, genetic differences that increased their fasting testosterone and insulin levelswhich drastically increases their risk of developing cancer of the body of the uterus.
Being overweight causes genetic differences
Endometrial cancer is most often manifested by vaginal bleeding after menopauseunusual heavy periods, bleeding between periods or a change in your vaginal discharge.
“This study is an interesting first step in how genetic analyzes could be used to find out exactly how obesity causes cancer and what could be done about it.“said Emma Hazelwood, lead author of the study.
“The links between obesity and uterine cancer are well known, but this is one of the largest studies to have looked at exactly why it’s happening at the molecular level.“, she added. These results could help doctors to adapt treatments, and in particular using medications to raise or lower hormone levels in people already at higher risk of cancer.
Sources:
- “Identifying molecular mediators of the relationship between body mass index and endometric cancer risk: a Mendelian randomization analysis”, BMC MedicineApril 19, 2022
Read also:
- Endometrial cancer: how is the operation going?
- Does post-menopause increase the risk of endometrial cancer?
- Endometrial cancer: who are the women most at risk?
