JAMA Netw Open

Excess body weight tied to increased risk of second primary cancer

September 23, 2024

For older individuals who've survived nonmetastatic cancer, having overweight or obesity at the time of initial cancer diagnosis increases the likelihood of developing a second cancer, particularly one related to obesity. These findings highlight the connection between excess body weight and the increased risk of subsequent cancers, underscoring the need for healthy weight recommendations and greater vigilance for second cancers in medical care for cancer survivors.

• In this cohort of 26,894 older survivors of nonmetastatic cancer, 42.8% had overweight and 17.2% had obesity at their first primary cancer diagnosis.
• During a median follow-up time of 7.9 years, 13.9% participants received a diagnosis of a second primary cancer, of which 33.2% were obesity-related second primary cancers.
• Compared with cancer survivors whose BMI was in the normal range, there was 15% increased risk of any second primary cancer for those who had overweight and a 34% increased risk for those who had obesity, with greater risk for obesity-related second primary cancers, including a 40% increased risk for those with overweight and a 78% increased risk for those with obesity.

Source:

Bodelon C, et al. (2024, September 3). JAMA Netw Open. Excess Body Weight and the Risk of Second Primary Cancers Among Cancer Survivors. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39287946/