When it comes to the topics of obesity and cancer, many would agree that being overweight will cause a higher risk for developing cancer. More than a thousand studies have provided strong evidence that being obese increases the risk for at least thirteen types of cancers. Nicholas Bakalar, in his article titled “More Cancers Tied to Obesity,” tells that these thirteen types of cancers account for more than 42% of new cancer diagnoses. Over the past forty years, obesity has increased dramatically and can be considered an epidemic due to the escalation of weight gain (Mantel). Because of the rise in obesity, cancer is becoming a greater issue and research is being conducted in order to show this and solve the problem. Although the link between cancer and obesity has not been definitively determined, the research being currently conducted is beneficial. The amount of cancer cases that are caused by obesity is increasing, and awareness should be raised for this epidemic. In order to solve the problem, there must be an increase in public education about the connection between obesity and cancer, especially for minority populations. 

In order to understand the link between cancer and obesity, background information is necessary. According to the Hormone Health Network, “obesity is a chronic, long term, medical problem of having too much body fat” (“Hormones and Obesity”). In order to determine whether or not one is obese, a scale called body mass index, BMI, is used. The more body fat a person has, the higher their body mass index number will be. A BMI weight status below 18.5 is considered underweight, while a BMI weight status above 25.0 to 29.9 is considered overweight. If a person has a BMI weight status about 30.0, they are considered to be obese (“Hormones and Obesity”). Along with cancer, obesity also causes diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, gallstones, high cholesterol, and gout. Obesity can be caused by genetics, over eating, exercising too little, and taking in more calories each day than are burned (“Hormones and Obesity”). By having a healthy diet and exercising regularly, one can refrain from becoming overweight or obese. There are many actions that could be taken in order to prevent national obesity and these include lowering the price of produce, imposing taxes on sugar, and labeling menus at restaurants. According to Cure Search for Children’s Cancer, “cancer is a disease in which cells grow and divide with little or no control” (“What is Cancer?”). Cancer begins when cells in the body duplicate, but pass on defected genes. Once cancerous cells are in the body, they begin to divide and duplicate rapidly as they spread to other areas. The cancerous cells are also able to destroy healthy cells around them and this is what makes it hard to catch and treat. 

Although the link between obesity and cancer has not been certainly defined, there are a few theories that explain why obesity increases the risk for cancer. Once these theories are explained to the public, then the epidemic can be stopped. According to the Cancer Research United Kingdom, the three leading theories are “the estrogen connection, metabolic chaos, and inflammation” (Smith). The estrogen connection is that obesity causes an increased risk for breast and womb cancer after menopause due to the escalated levels of oestrogen. Emma Smith, blog writer for the Cancer Research United Kingdom tells that “in premenopausal women, the ovaries are the main oestrogen producing cells. But fat cells can make oestrogen too.” Once a woman is in the postmenopausal phase, her ovaries do not continue to work and the fat cells produce the oestrogen. Since the fat cells are able to produce oestrogen as well, this causes the levels to dramatically increase and this leads to uncontrollable cell division. The next theory, metabolic chaos, states that “the chemical signals produced by fat cells mean that obesity can cause a major upset to this balance” (Smith). The fat cells in the body while obese cause an increase in the insulin levels and this is believed to cause cancer. The last theory, inflammation, says that, “as people become obese, and more fat cells build up in their tissues, specialized immune cells are called to the scene” (Smith). As these specialized immune cells are sent to do their job, they release chemicals and this ultimately leads to inflammation. Continued chronic inflammation in an overweight person has been shown to possibly lead to cancer.

According to Nicholas Bakalar, a new study has proven that being obese increases the risk for thirteen different cancers. Although the types of cancer have been proven within the scientific field, many people are still unaware of this discovery. Once these thirteen types of cancers are exposed to the public, then the people can start changing their lifestyles in order to prevent their risk. The study conducted by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, was able to identify the thirteen cancers caused by obesity as adenocarcinoma of the esophagus, colorectal cancer, breast cancer in postmenopausal women, uterine cancer, kidney cancers, gastric cardia, stomach cancer, liver cancer, gallbladder cancer, pancreatic cancer, thyroid cancer, ovarian cancer, meningioma, and multiple myeloma (Bakalar D4). Five of these cancers were already known to be caused by obesity, but the other eight were discovered by the study. Because the discovery of thirteen cancers linked to obesity is alarming, one would hope that people would take caution with their weight. I believe that the discovery of the eight new cancers linked to obesity is due to the fact that more people are becoming obese. According to Barbara Mantel, a writer for the New York Times, “obesity has increased dramatically over the last 40 years.” Currently, one third of children and two thirds of adults are overweight or obese (Mantel). With the increase in obesity, it is likely that there would be more of a focus on the types of cancers that it causes.

According to research, cancer in women is rising six times faster than cancer in men (“Obesity Fueling Rise in Cancer Among Women”). The results from research could be used in order to provide education to women on obesity and cancer. From this, one could believe that the link between cancer and obesity is stronger in women than in men. Each year, more women are developing cancer while being obese than men and this is alarming. Because the rates for cancer will rise 0.5% for men and 3% for women, I believe that women should be educated on their risk (“Obesity Fueling Rise in Cancer Among Women”). Women with a body mass index higher than 25 are 20-40% more likely to develop breast cancer than someone with a body mass index below 25 (“Obesity and Cancer”). Research also shows that 20% of cancer deaths in women have been caused by being obese (Carson, et al.). From these statistics, one should be alarmed with the increased risk for obese women and cancer. According to the Cancer Research United Kingdom, “Drinking alcohol is also impacting women’s cancer rates, but not to the same degree as smoking and obesity.” On one hand I believe that awareness should be brought upon all of these issues, but I also think that an emphasis should be put on obesity. Since the rise in obesity and link between cancer is new, few people know about it. Drinking alcohol and smoking tobacco has been known to cause different types of cancers for a while, but since the connection with obesity has been recently discovered, the public should be brought to attention over this. It is essential that women learn about the new risks with obesity and cancer in order to prevent it or reverse their chances of developing it. 

While all people should be educated on the risk for cancer while being obese, it should be especially emphasized to minorities. In regards to which race is more likely to develop cancer due to obesity, it has been thought that African American and Latinos are at greater risk. Stacey Brown, freelance journalist for the Washington Informer, contends that the risk for cancer increases in postmenopausal African American and Latino women. I completely agree with this, however I do not think it is because of race. I believe that African American and Latino women are more at risk for cancer due to having the highest percentages of obesity. According to the Obesity Society, “in 2012, 56.7% of African American women were obese” (“Cancer and Obesity”). Also, according to the State of Obesity, a special report, “42% of Latino women are obese” (“Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Obesity”). These two statistics compared to Caucasian women are much higher. Since these two ethnicities have higher obesity rates, this would cause their number of cancer cases to be higher. Whether the risk for cancer is due to obesity or race, it is still important to educate the minority community. Prevention amongst minorities can happen once education, new policies, and heath care help are provided. 

Statistics have shown that Rhode Island is one of the most obese states and also has the highest obesity related cancer cases. The current situation in Rhode Island could be used in the process of proving education to the public. According to Elizabeth Prsic, a professor of Hematology and Oncology at Brown University in Rhode Island, “one third of the Rhode Island’s population is obese and 27.7% of adults were obese in 2013.” It has been predicted that 40% of the population will eventually develop cancer from obesity and 20% of this population will actually die from it (Prsic 16). Currently, Rhode Island is trying to control this epidemic by changing their policies, such as healthcare and insurance. By changing their policies, they are growing awareness for this troublesome epidemic and believe that others will learn from this. According to Prsic, “a 5% reduction in BMI by 2030 would result in an estimated decrease of 2,092 obesity related cancers with cumulative cost savings of $68,000,000” (Prsic 17). Many could argue that by having health care providers encouraging exercise and dieting, the state could save millions of dollars. Also, by changing insurance policies, many people would refrain from becoming obese. By raising the cost of insurance if one is obese or providing incentives to those who are not, people would control their weight and this would ultimately cause the amount of cancer cases to decrease. Many outsiders view the escalating obesity numbers in Rhode Island as an unsolvable and hopeless case, but others could learn from this. While it is true that Rhode Island is one of the most obese states, I believe that the situation could be used as a learning tool to others. Other states could use Rhode Island as an example in order to strengthen their policies to prevent the same epidemic from occurring. 

In order to control this epidemic, many different techniques could be implemented. Center of Disease Control Director Thomas Frieden says, “We need intensive, comprehensive and ongoing efforts to address obesity. If we don’t, more people will get sick and die from obesity-related conditions such as heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and certain types of cancers.” (Mantel). Barbara Mantel in her article “Preventing Obesity” includes many different ways that obesity and cancer could be controlled.  Many experts believe that more desk jobs, communities designed for driving, more time spent in front of electronic screens, declining physical education, vending machines, increased portion sizes, less home-cooking, increasing prices in nutritious foods, and declining prices for high calorie foods have caused the increase in obesity (Mantel). Studies have shown that the lower class in the United States has the highest obesity and cancer rates and this is due to not being able to afford the higher priced, nutritious food or being exposed to enough fruits and vegetables. The prices of produce are consistently remaining high, and if there were some way to lower the prices, then the amount of obesity and cancer rates could fall. Another way that Mantel says would lower the rates would be imposing a tax on sugar sweetened beverages. According to Mantel, “over the past 30 years, the average American has doubled the amount of calories consumed each day from sugar-sweetened beverages” (Mantel). I completely agree that by imposing a tax, less people would pay for sugar-sweetened beverages, however, there would still be a percentage of people that would. This method could definitely lower the obesity and cancer rates for a percentage of people. One more method would be menu labeling at restaurants. According to Mantel, “Americans now consume an estimated one-third of their total calories prepared outside the home, and most of the times, have trouble accurately estimating the calorie count” (Mantel). I agree that by providing menu labeling, more people would be calorie cautious while eating outside of the home. This would more than likely decrease the amount of obesity in the United States and ultimately lower the cancer rates. 

Obesity is already a major problem today, and because of this, several types of cancer are on the rise as well. Although the link between obesity and cancer has not been certainly established, it is definitely being hypothesized. Whether it is because of estrogen levels, metabolic chaos, inflammation, or something that has not been studied yet, cancer and obesity have a connection. Due to the growing rates of obesity, more and more people are developing cancer and something must be done. By raising awareness of which types of cancers are likely to be caused, who is more at risk, and what could be done, the rates for obesity and cancer will decrease. 
