New research out this week shows long-term benefits of bariatric surgery, or weight loss. The study found that people who underwent the surgery were significantly less likely to develop certain types of cancer over a 10-year period compared to similar obese people who did not undergo surgery. Those who developed cancer were also less likely to die from it.
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The study was conducted by researchers at Gundersen Lutheran Health System in Wisconsin. They reviewed the medical records of more than 1,000 patients who had undergone surgery at their hospital since 2001. These patients were compared to a control group of nearly 2,000 non-surgical patients, who were matched for factors such as gender, age and baseline body mass index (BMI). Their cancer-related outcomes were then tracked over a 10-year period.
During these years, the odds of a new cancer diagnosis were significantly lower in the surgery group compared with the control group (5.2% vs. 12.2%). The largest reductions in risk were seen for breast cancer (1.4% vs. 2.7%), female reproductive system cancers (0.4% vs. 2.6%), and kidney cancer (0.10% vs. 0.80%). In addition, the 10-year survival rate for cancer patients was 92.9% in the bariatric group compared with 80.6% for control patients.
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The findings were presented this week at the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (ASMBS) Annual Meeting and have yet to be published in a scientific journal, a crucial part of the process. But this is the latest research to show that bariatric patients have better health, including a reduced risk of cancer, after surgery. In fact, a separate paper presented this week at ASMBS found that patients who had surgery were 37 percent less likely to develop colon cancer.
“ This study also sheds light on the various cancers that obesity can cause, as well as the extent to which bariatric surgery can reduce cancer risk ,” Jared Miller , a general and bariatric surgeon at Gundersen Lutheran, told Gizmodo . “ We believe this information is crucial in informing other healthcare professionals about how a cancer specific to each specialty may be affected by bariatric surgery .”
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There are several forms of bariatric surgery. Most involve permanent reduction of the digestive tract. Patients then tend to lose a significant amount of weight without gaining it back, which is very difficult to achieve through typical dietary and lifestyle changes. Most of the cancer-related benefits of surgery come from this weight loss, Miller says, although other physical changes may be involved. He notes that obesity has been linked to increased inflammation, changes in the gut microbiome and altered hormone levels, mechanisms that could contribute to cancer risk and survival.
