Need Weight Loss Inspiration? Read About Ovarian Cancer And Obesity

A recent study indicates that women who are postmenopausal, have never used hormone replacement therapy and are also obese may have an increased risk of getting ovarian cancer when compared to women of normal weight. This study also suggests that women who are obese and who have used hormone replacement therapy (HRT) do not have the same degree of risk as those who have used HRT. The findings from this study have been published in the Feb 15, 2008 issue of the journal entitled Cancer.

Something you may or may not know is that two of the leading causes of cancer in the western world are smoking tobacco and obesity. The fact that obese women are at an increased risk of ovarian cancer is yet another good reason for them to seek safe weight loss. In the U.S., ovarian cancer is one of the leading cancer killers for women. This is very disturbing as only 37% of women who are diagnosed with ovarian cancer will survive beyond five years.

It is interesting to note that women who have borne children and who have used oral contraceptives seem to be at a decreased risk of developing ovarian cancer. The combined effects of a family history of ovarian cancer and problems with obesity appear to contribute to the risk of ovarian cancer. If you fall into this category then it is even more essential that you do something about it. Obviously it is impossible to change the family history part of the equation, but you can definitely do something about the obesity factor.

Women who have never used hormone therapy have an 80% higher risk of developing ovarian cancer, according to the study. If these women do not have any family history of ovarian cancer, being overweight increases their chances of developing ovarian cancer by 36%. The reason for this appears to be that carrying excess fat increases estrogen production which may lead to the emergence of cancerous cells in the ovaries. This indicates that women who have been exposed to menopausal replacement hormones may have been protected from ovarian cancer.

According to scientists at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, the chances of ovarian cancer being fatal for an obese woman is considerably higher than for a woman of normal weight. The scientists also noticed that obesity can make a recurrence of the cancer more likely.

Some experts feel that women who stave off weight gain as the years go by may reduce the risk of developing many types of cancer including ovarian. According to statistics gathered in 2002 approximately 41,000 new cases of cancer recorded in the United States were the result of obesity. According to the U.S. Cancer Detection and Prevention Department in 2003 3.2% of all new cancers are linked to obesity.

Despite the fact that some studies indicated a link between obesity and ovarian cancer others showed no association between the two. Another study suggests that while women who were obese in their youth had an increased risk for ovarian cancer, women who developed obesity later in life did not.

Some of these results may seem a little confusing but the bottom line is that if you are seriously overweight then it is time to take action and begin to lose weight now.