Malignant Melanoma Risk Lowered After Bariatric Surgery While Obesity Increases Its Risk
Source: Thailand Medical News Jan 04, 2020 4 years, 3 months, 2 weeks, 13 hours, 23 minutes ago
A new study shows that
bariatric surgery is associated with a distinct reduction in
skin-cancer risk, a study shows. This finding can be described as a key piece of evidence that substantiates the connection between weight loss and malignant
skin cancer.
Dr Magdalena Taube, the first author behind the study and a researcher in molecular and clinical medicine at Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg told
Thailand Medical News, "This provides further evidence for a connection between
obesity and
malignant melanoma , and for the view that we should regard obesity as a risk factor for these forms of
cancer."
The fact that
obesity is a risk factor for several types of
cancer is well known. The same applies to the fact that people's risk level can be lowered by means of an intentional weight reduction. However, the evidence for a connection between
obesity and weight loss on the one hand and, in particular,
malignant skin cancer on the other has been limited to date.
The new study, published in
JAMA Dermatology, used data from what is known as the SOS (Swedish
Obese Subjects) study, which is led and coordinated from the University of Gothenburg. Other data sources included the Swedish
Cancer Register kept by the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare.
The medical researchers studied a group of 2,007 people who underwent
bariatric surgery, and compared them with a control group of 2,040 individuals. The latter also had severe
obesity but were not given
bariatric surgery. Otherwise, in terms of gender, age, body composition, risk factors for cardiovascular disease, and psychosocial variables, the groups were comparable.
The research group included 23 individuals who developed
malignant skin cancer, i.e. squamous cell carcinoma or
malignant melanoma, in parallel with marked weight loss. The corresponding figure for such
cancer cases in the control group was 45, while this group remained at the severe
obesity level. The median follow-up period was just over 18 years.
The biggest difference related to
malignant melanoma: 12 people in the surgery group were affected, against 29 in the control group. The results thus show a 57 percent fall in risk for
malignant melanoma in the group who lost weight after
bariatric surgery. The corresponding risk decrease for both
cancer forms combined was 42 percent.
Dr Taube commented,"In these contexts, it's a clear and striking change. And that's why it's so interesting."
The study findings support the idea that
obesity is a risk factor for
malignant skin cancer, including
melanoma, and indicate that weight loss in individuals with&am
p;nbsp;
obesity may reduce their risk for this severe form of
cancer.
Dr Magdalena Taube concluded,"We can say this with certainty now, thanks to our having an extremely well documented and described population that we've been able to monitor for a long time, and in which we can see very clearly what happens when a major, lasting weight loss takes place."
Reference : Magdalena Taube et al. Association of Bariatric Surgery With Skin Cancer Incidence in Adults With Obesity, JAMA Dermatology (2019). DOI: 10.1001/jamadermatol.2019.3240
