Why is managing body weight important?
Connections to cancer survival
Our note: The link between weight loss and risk of death is a little tricky to interpret. As disease progresses, people tend to lose weight, and especially as they approach the end of life. We often cannot determine whether weight loss was a cause or a consequence of illness and approaching death. Only if weight loss is associated with longer survival can we be confident that weight loss may be helpful.
Connections to body terrain factors
These body terrainthe internal conditions of your body, including nutritional status, fitness, blood sugar balance, hormone balance, inflammation, and more factors are linked to cancer risk or outcomes.
Connections to symptoms and side effects
Connections to cancer risk
Excess body weight is associated with an increased risk for cancer related to at least 13 sites:60Avgerinos KI, Spyrou N, Mantzoros CS, Dalamaga M. Obesity and cancer risk: emerging biological mechanisms and perspectives. Metabolism. 2018 Nov 13. pii: S0026-0495(18)30232-4; National Cancer Institute. Obesity and Cancer. January 17, 2017. Viewed September 22, 2021.
- Breast cancer (postmenopausal)
- Colorectal cancer
- Esophageal cancer
- Gallbladder cancer
- Kidney cancer
- Liver cancer
- Meningioma
- Multiple myeloma
- Ovarian cancer
- Pancreatic cancer
- Stomach (gastric cardia) cancer
- Thyroid cancer
- Uterine (endometrial) cancer
A few further cancer types show a possible association:
- Breast cancer in males
- Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
- Oral cancers
- Prostate cancer (aggressive)
How a healthy body weight relates to other practices and habits
Healthy lifestyle
Lower risk of lethal prostate cancer, but not overall prostate cancer, over 27 years among people with high genetic risk following a healthy lifestyle of a healthy weight, vigorous physical activity, no smoking, and a healthy diet (good evidence)
Eating Well
Not specific to cancer:
- More weight loss and less weight gain among people with body-mass index (BMI) higher than 25 eating more fruits and vegetables (good evidence)
- Lower body weight or more weight loss among people eating earlier instead of late in the day (modest evidence)
- No evidence of an effect on obesity among people eating high-calorie (energy-dense) foods in a combined analysis of reviews and combined analyses
Moving More
Less body fat and more lean body mass among people with cancer participating in exercise without regard to treatment phase (strong evidence)
Increased lean body mass and less body fat or obesity during neoadjuvant or adjuvant chemotherapy, radiotherapy, or hormone therapy, including androgen deprivation therapy, among people participating in exercise (good evidence)
Sleeping Well
Not specific to cancer:
- Moderately higher risk of obesity among people with sleep duration less than 6 hours (good evidence)
- Higher risk of obesity among people with sleep duration more than 7 hours (modest evidence)
- Lower sleep disturbance scores among sedentary obese or overweight people losing weight or abdominal fat compared to no loss in a small observational study81Nam S, Stewart KJ, Dobrosielski DA. Lifestyle intervention for sleep disturbances among overweight or obese individuals. Behavioral Sleep Medicine. 2016;14(3):343-50. (preliminary evidence)
Creating a Healing Environment
Not specific to cancer:
- Greater risk of obesity and larger waist circumference among people with the highest body levels of bisphenol A (BPA) (modest evidence)
- Lower risk of overweight and obesity among people without cancer consuming organic foods more frequently (modest evidence)
Sharing Love and Support
Not specific to cancer:
- More abdominal fat among women with lower levels of perceived social support (preliminary evidence)
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References