A recent study has shown some good news. It says people who get weight-loss surgery may be less likely to get colorectal cancer.
Colorectal cancer is a disease that affects your colon or rectum. People who had the surgery were 37% less likely to get this type of cancer. This is compared to people who are very overweight but didn’t get the surgery.
The Importance of These Findings
The American Cancer Society says a lot of people get colorectal cancer. They think that over 150,000 people will be diagnosed this year.
It’s the third main cause of death from cancer in the US. Being very overweight can make you more likely to get many types of cancer.
This includes colorectal cancer. It can also make you more likely to get other serious diseases. Like type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke.
The Study Explained
Several researchers did this study. They came from different places. Like the Military Institution of Aviation Medicine in Poland.
And Texas Tech School of Medicine in El Paso. Also, the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in Rochester, MN.
The researchers looked at data from other studies. They looked at 13 studies on weight-loss surgery and colorectal cancer. They followed more than 3.2 million patients for up to 10 years.
The studies they used were published between 2008 and 2021. This covers a longer and more recent time than other reviews on this topic.
What the Researchers Said
Michal Janik, a doctor who worked on the study, had something to say. He says that weight-loss surgery might give strong protection against colorectal cancer.
This is for people who are very overweight. This protection lasts for at least 10 years. This is how long several of the studies followed their patients.
Janik says this is important because colorectal cancer takes time to develop. The protection is still there even after a decade.
The study didn’t look at risk factors other than being overweight. It didn’t measure weight loss. It didn’t link findings to any specific type of weight-loss surgery. The researchers said future studies should do these things.
They should see if there’s a difference in colorectal cancer rates between different surgeries. They should also see if the length of time being overweight makes a difference.
Takeaways from the Study
Shanu Kothari, a doctor not involved in the study, spoke about it. He said the study shows something important. When you treat being very overweight with weight-loss surgery, you might also prevent colorectal cancer.
Plus, you might stop or improve other diseases and conditions. This shows the potential benefits of weight-loss surgery.
If you care about health, please read studies about the benefits of low-dose lithium supplements, and what we know about egg intake and heart disease.
For more information about health, please see recent studies about potatoes and high blood pressure, and results showing 6 best breads for people with heart disease.
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