Research has long shown that substantial weight loss among obesity patients can help to reduce the risk of a long list of different medical conditions. High on that list, alongside cardiovascular disease and diabetes, are many forms of cancer. That said, a new study has shown that losing this weight via bariatric surgery can also be beneficial in this way.
It’s the Substantial Weight Loss, Not the Diet
The reason this new research is helpful is that it helps to show that it’s the substantial weight loss that makes all the difference when it comes to reducing those health risks such as cancer. Whether a person loses weight through dietary and exercise changes and the best selling diet pills, or whether they undergo bariatric surgery, when the pounds are reduced and maintained, the benefits regarding cancer risk are still enjoyed.
This is important news because research has also been showing that there isn’t just one ideal way to achieve weight loss goals. Regardless of whether a person is overweight or obese, the right strategy for them is the one they’ll be able to maintain over time. Sustainability has been considered key. That said, some have wondered if it’s better for someone to lose in one way over another based on the reduction in risks such as cancer. This research suggests that the risk reductions occur regardless.
Massive Cancer Risk Reduction
According to the study, which was published in JAMA, obesity patients who underwent bariatric surgery had a 32 percent lower likelihood of developing cancer. Moreover, they were 48 percent less likely to develop cancer than would have been the case if they had not undergone the surgery for substantial weight loss.
The research was conducted in the form of a long-term study of over 30,000 Cleveland Clinic patients. It ran from 2004 through 2017. Each of the patients in the study had a body mass index of at least 35, which is medically considered to be “class 2” or at “moderate risk” obesity.
The researchers in this study conducted a follow-up with about 5,000 of those patients who were between the ages of 18 and 80 and who underwent either gastric bypass surgery or gastric sleeve surgery during the study period. None of those patients had previously received a cancer diagnosis.
Substantial Weight Loss Reduces the Risk of Some Cancers More than Others
The researchers found that among those who underwent substantial weight loss due to the surgeries, the chances of developing or dying of cancers with a link to obesity – such as ovarian and pancreatic cancer – had dropped substantially.
During the study period, 2.9 percent of the patients who had the obesity surgery received a cancer diagnosis. Among those who didn’t have the surgery, 4.9 percent received a diagnosis. Among those who did have the surgery, 0.8 percent died of cancer. Among those who didn’t, 1.4 percent died of cancer. The figures remained steady regardless of age, sex, or race.