A new study shows women who are obese when they are diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer are at greater risk of dying from it than women of normal weight.
Studies in the past have shown that obesity is a risk factor for breast cancer's development, and has also shown to have contradictory results about the influence of bodyweight on survival rates. According to a latest study researchers say, they have demonstrated a significant association between obesity and adverse breast cancer outcome in patients with early-stage breast cancer. Despite being diagnosed with early-stage disease, which has more commonly cured, obese women more often developed metastatic [advanced] disease and more often died.In a 15-year study, researchers compared the outcome data of 2,010 obese, overweight, and normal-weight women with early-stage breast cancer treated with conservation surgery and radiation therapy. The five-year survival rates for normal-weight and overweight women were 92 percent, while the rate for obese women was 88 percent. Five-year rates of advanced disease were 7 percent for normal-weight women, 6 percent for overweight women, and 10 percent for the obese group.
Researchers say,their results show a statistically significant difference between obese women and the other groups. Because the prevalence of obesity increases with age, as does the risk of breast cancer, however they say that interventions that enhance weight control may have a substantial effect on breast cancer outcome.
