A recent study presented at the European Congress on Obesity (ECO) has highlighted an increased risk of specific cancers—such as liver, pancreatic, and bowel cancers—following the onset of type 2 diabetes (T2D). However, the research also found that not all obesity-related cancers are linked to a new diagnosis of the disease.
The study, set to be discussed at the ECO in Malaga, Spain, from May 11-14, analyzed data from the UK Biobank to explore the connection between newly diagnosed T2D and various obesity-related cancers, including endometrial and postmenopausal breast cancer. It found that while liver, pancreatic, and bowel cancers showed a significant association with T2D, no such link was found for the aforementioned cancers.
According to the researchers, the reasons behind these differences between men and women remain unclear. They speculated that it could be due to biological factors like hormone levels, insulin sensitivity, and body fat composition, or simply due to discrepancies in the number of cancer diagnoses across genders within the study sample.
With nearly 589 million people worldwide currently living with diabetes, as reported by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), the study highlights a growing concern. More than 250 million individuals remain undiagnosed, significantly raising their risk for severe health complications and early mortality.
To delve deeper into the relationship between T2D and obesity-related cancers (ORCs), the study employed a matched cohort design using UK Biobank data. Participants with newly diagnosed, non-insulin-dependent T2D were paired with control participants based on body mass index (BMI), age, and sex.
Over a median follow-up period of 5 years, researchers identified 2,431 new cancer cases among individuals with new-onset T2D, compared to 5,184 cases in the control group. The results indicated that men with new-onset T2D had a 48% higher risk of developing obesity-related cancers, while women faced a 24% increased risk, independent of BMI.
The risk differed by cancer type. Men with T2D showed a 27% higher risk of developing bowel cancer, while the figure for women was 34%. Pancreatic cancer risk increased by 74% in men and nearly doubled in women. Liver cancer risk also soared—by nearly four times in men and almost five times in women.
However, no significant link was found between T2D and cancers such as endometrial or postmenopausal breast cancer, pointing to a potential site-specific connection that could be influenced by gender-related factors.
The researchers emphasized the need for further investigation into the pathways through which T2D might affect certain obesity-related cancers. Despite accounting for biases such as smoking, alcohol consumption, and detection-time bias, the study revealed that new-onset T2D is associated with an elevated risk of some, but not all, obesity-related cancers.
“As we have controlled for key biases and confounders in this study, our findings suggest that the link between T2D and obesity-related cancers is site-specific and warrants further research,” the researchers concluded.
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