Research
Energy balance
Intentional weight loss, particularly through bariatric surgery or significant lifestyle changes, reduces the risk of obesity-associated cancers, including endometrial and breast cancer.
If you are obese, losing weight can significantly lower your risk of endometrial and breast cancer. Even a modest loss of 20 pounds or more has been shown to reduce risk. Bariatric surgery, for those eligible, offers even greater protection.
ModerateSupportsMEDIUM confidence
In a prospective cohort of more than 20,000 women in the Iowa Women’s Health Study, women who had an intentional 20-pound or more weight loss had a 14% lower risk of obesity-related cancers than women who did not lose weight.
Why this rating
Based on prospective cohort studies; RCT data is currently lacking.
Source
Review: Diabetes, Obesity, and Cancer—Pathophysiology and Clinical Implications
Iliana C. Lega et al. · Endocrine Reviews · 2019
DOI 10.1210/endrev/bnz014
narrative_reviewCited 345×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Obesity is an independent risk factor for multiple cancers, with endometrial, post-menopausal breast, and colorectal cancers accounting for over 60% of cancers attributed to obesity.Good
- Type 2 diabetes is associated with an increased risk of specific cancers, including endometrial, colorectal, breast, pancreatic, liver, and kidney cancers, while being associated with a decreased risk of prostate cancer.Moderate
- Metformin use in patients with diabetes is associated with a reduced risk of cancer and cancer-specific mortality, although methodological biases in early studies may have inflated these estimates.Moderate
Related findings · Energy balance
- Achieving a total body weight loss of 10-15% (or >10-15 kg) through Total Diet Replacement (TDR) induces remission of Type 2 Diabetes in individuals with short-duration disease.Strong
- Bariatric surgery is superior to medical management alone for inducing significant long-term weight loss, remission of type 2 diabetes, and reduction in mortality for patients with BMI ≥ 40 or ≥ 35 with comorbidities.Strong
- Achieving type 2 diabetes remission requires significant weight loss (≥15 kg) via major caloric restriction, independent of macronutrient composition.Strong
This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →