Bariatric Surgery Reduces Cancer Chances, Study Says

In our next story, we recently reported on the positive effect that weight loss surgery can have on reducing the risk of ovarian cancer in older women. Now it appears the same benefits hold true for younger women, as well.  In San Antonio, TX, a team of researchers has presented evidence that bariatric surgery may help reduce the rates of several different kinds of cancers for women of all ages.

The study compared cancer rates between a group of women who underwent weight loss surgery and another group of obese women who did not opt for surgery. At the end of the study, 3.6% of the weight loss surgery patients developed some form of cancer, versus 5.8% of the participants who did not have surgery.

Interestingly, lead researcher Dr. Susan Modesitt noted that both groups of obese women with endometrial, breast, ovarian or colorectal cancers were younger at diagnosis compared with the mean ages from the state’s Cancer Registry for each type of cancer.

Get the latest updates on research related to the treatment of obesity and related co-morbidities, lifestyle tips for staying healthy post-op, and human interest stories that are sure to move you, each week on WLS News!

In the February 20, 2009, newscast, we’ll give you the latest on the federal government’s new Medicare policy regarding weight loss surgery for Type 2 Diabetes, explore how bariatric surgery can decrease the risk of certain cancers in women, and take a look at some promising findings on the development of an obesity drug.

We’ll also give you the facts about tummy tucks, uncover the relationship between obesity and incontinence, and check in with WLS Journeys host Yvonne McCarthy as she talks about one of her favorite WLS websites!

Organizations mentioned in this week’s news:

• Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
• Society for Gynecologic Oncologists
• University of Virginia Medical School
• Virginia State Cancer Registry
• Dr. Bill Adams (Plastic Surgeon)
• Obesity Action Coalition
• Lap-Band King (WLS video blog of Marcus Cook)
• Bariatric Girl (Yvonne McCarthy’s WLS support site)
• University of North Carolina School of Medicine
• New England Journal of Medicine
• Bariatric Advantage (nutritional supplements)

A lack of hormone therapy may contribute to a higher cancer risk for obese women. A seven-year-long study looked at almost a HUNDRED THOUSAND women ages 50 to 71 and found that obese women were no more likely to get ovarian cancer than their thinner sisters– IF they used hormone replacement therapy.

However, women with obesity who had NEVER used hormone replacement therapy were almost TWO TIMES more likely to develop ovarian cancer than women of normal weight.

So why do obese women who don’t take their hormones run a higher risk of ovarian cancer? It could be a concentration of surplus ESTROGEN produced by the fat cells in the body, according to Dr. Michael Leitzmann, one of the researchers of the study.  But, the jury is still out.

If you’ve been prescribed hormone therapy, it might help prevent obesity related cancers.

Does eating food fast make you fat?

A team of researchers in the U.K. thinks it might – and that the tendency to scarf down a meal can be passed down from parents to kids. In a recent study, doctors from the Health Behavior Research Centre at the University College London measured the eating speed of several pairs of twin children, who were divided into three body-type groups: overweight, high-normal and low-normal.

The twins were videotaped eating standardized portions of food, and researchers then counted the number of bites per minute the children took while chowing down.

To analyze the data, researches noted the changes in eating speed during the meal, and cross-indexed the information with the inherited body type of each pair of twins.

What they found was that the overweight twins not only consumed MORE food on average than normal-weight twins, but they also ate FASTER, as well. From this, the study team concluded that faster eating can lead to weight gain, and that it’s likely that the TENDENCY to eat quickly is passed from parent to child genetically.

Even so, DNA is not destiny: The study’s lead author noted that children most likely learn the actual BEHAVIOR of eating quickly from their parents and said that – quote – the “early promotion of slower eating for all children could…help to control current obesity trends.”

So all you parents out there, teach your youngster’s to take it slow at the dinner table, and you’ll help them keep off the pounds in the long run.

Now, what about grown-ups who struggle with obesity? A new study from the National Cancer Institute that will be released next month notes that obese post-menopausal women may have a higher risk of ovarian cancer.

It seems that it’s time to slow down the fat- by not eating food too quickly.

Join host Leslie Thompson for a fun and fact-filled look at the latest research and events related to the treatment of obesity each week on WLS News!

The January 23, 2009, report includes new research on the relationship between obesity and ovarian cancer in post-menopausal women, a study on whether obesity rates in children are affected by how fast they eat, news about a group of flight attendants fighting weight discrimination, and a look at why some Texas taxpayers may soon be footing the bill for lower-income residents seeking weight loss surgery. Plus, find out how robots are helping America overcome its obesity epidemic!

And, of course, WLS Journeys host Yvonne McCarthy will guide viewers toward her top picks for the best WLS support and information online in our weekly feature, “WLS on the World Wide Web”. Click the screen below to watch now!

Organizations mentioned in this week’s news:

• American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
• Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University College London
• National Cancer Institute
  
• Cancer (Medical Journal)
• Air India
• Americans with Disabilities Act
• Bariatric Girl (Yvonne McCarthy’s WLS support site)
• GastricBypassTruth.com (WLS blog and helpful articles)
• JPS Health Network (Tarrant County, TX hospital system)
• Medicare (official government site)
• Northeast Georgia Medical Center
• Intuitive Surgical, Inc. (maker of the da Vinci Surgical System)
• Bariatric Advantage (nutritional supplements)