Travel nursing news: Obesity linked to 10 cancers

Obesity is an overarching problem that drags down nearly every other aspect of health, a fact that those with travel nursing careers know well. On top of being tied to diabetes, cardiovascular disease and stroke, obesity has been shown to increase the risk for 10 common forms of cancer, according to a new study that is the largest of its kind.

Researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and the Farr Institute of Health Informatics analyzed the medical records of more than 5 million adults in the U.K. between 1987 and 2012 to understand how obesity affected cancer. In the results, almost 167,000 people developed cancer, and high body mass index (BMI) was associated with 17 of the 22 cancers that the patients had.

For every 5 kilograms per square meter of BMI increase, there was a 31 percent increase in the risk of cancer of the gallbladder; a 62 percent higher risk in the uterus; 25 percent increase in the kidney; 19 percent in the liver; and 10 percent or less of colon, cervix, thyroid, ovarian, post menopausal and leukemia.

“There was a lot of variation in the effect of BMI on different cancers,” lead researcher Dr. Krishnan Bhaskaran explained to BBC News. “For example, risk of cancer of the uterus increased substantially at higher body mass index, for other cancer, we saw a more modest increase in risk or no effect at all. This variation tells us BMI must affect cancer risk through a number of different processes, depending on cancer type.”

Relationship between cancer and obesity
The National Cancer Institute highlights several possible mechanisms that might explain the association of obesity with an increased risk of certain cancers. For one, fat tissue produces excess amounts of estrogen, high levels of which have been tied to breast cancer risk as well as the formation of other cancers.

Another explanation is that obese people often have increased levels of insulin and insulin-like growth factor 1 in their blood (a cause of Type 2 diabetes), which may encourage the development of certain tumors.

What’s more, those on travel nursing jobs understand that fat cells produce hormones called adipokines that play a key role in cell growth. For instance, leptin, which is more common in obese people, appears to promote cell proliferation, whereas adiponectin, which is less common in obese people, may have antiproliferative effects.

As dangerous as smoking
Dr. Karen Basen-Engquist, director of MD Anderson’s new Center for Energy Balance in Cancer Prevention and Survivorship and professor of Behavioral Science, explained that obesity could be as dangerous as smoking cigarettes.

“Obesity is a major risk factor for developing cancer, roughly the equivalent of tobacco use, and both are potentially reversible,” Basen-Engquist, who was not involved in the study, told News Medical. “Further, obese cancer patients do worse in surgery, with radiation or on chemotherapy – worse by any measure.”

More than one-third of adults and youth in the U.S are obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. An additional 34 percent are considered overweight.

Furthermore, the study found that every one-point population-wide increase in BMI would result in 3,790 cancers each year. That’s indeed worrisome for medical staffing professionals and the greater population, considering that the average BMI in the U.S. has jumped nearly 2.5 points for men and almost four points for women since 1971.

Slimming down
The tricky part is breaking the long-established habits. Travel nursing professionals can provide exercise and diet tips for overweight individuals to shed pounds and reduce their chance of developing deadly diseases.