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Obesity increases the risk of oesophageal adenocarcinoma, primarily through gastroesophageal reflux and oesophagitis, whereas it may have an inverse or neutral association with oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
If you are obese, you are at higher risk for oesophageal adenocarcinoma, largely due to increased reflux. Managing your weight can reduce reflux and this risk. Be aware of chronic heartburn and seek medical advice if it persists.
GoodQualifiesMEDIUM confidence
obesity was found to be related to gastroesophageal reflux as well as to oesophagitis... Gastroesophageal reflux itself is considered to be a major risk factor for oesophageal adenocarcinoma... analyses of prospective data from Norway that confirmed the link between obesity and oesophageal adenocarcinoma have found inverse associations between BMI and oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma
Why this rating
Supported by meta-analyses and prospective studies, though the inverse association with squamous cell carcinoma is noted as potentially confounded by smoking.
Source
Obesity and cancer
Tobias Pischon et al. · Proceedings of The Nutrition Society · 2008
DOI 10.1017/s0029665108006976
narrative_reviewCited 322×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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