Weight Loss Surgery can Reduce the Risk of Cancer While Combating Obesity

A new study suggests that obese people have double the risk of and thrice the risk of mortality, as those who had undergone weight-loss surgery.

As per a recent estimation by CDC, the rate of obesity in the US is 41.9% among adults, with more than 9% severely obese. It is a fact that obesity leads to a wide assay of health problems including cancer. So much so, that it can cause as many as 13 different types of cancers.

Gastric bypass surgery and sleeve gastrectomy are two types of weight-loss surgeries known to combat stubborn weight, that otherwise don’t respond to exercise or diets. The top part of your stomach is attached to your small intestine through gastric bypass. By bypassing the stomach, fewer calories are absorbed. Approximately 80% of the stomach is removed during a sleeve gastrectomy, leaving a tube-shaped stomach that resembles a banana in size and shape.

According to the study, breast cancer incidence decreased by 1.4% compared with 2.7%, gynecologic cancer decreased by 0.4%, kidney cancer dropped by 0.80%, brain cancer decreased by 0.2%, lung cancer shrank by 0.5%, and thyroid cancer decreased by 0.1% compared with 0.7% after surgical weight loss.

The study provides mounting evidence that by treating obesity, certain types of cancer can be prevented. In addition to being a successful obesity treatment, weight-loss surgery is an effective preventative treatment for cancer, heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.