By Jason Gale
Jan. 6 (Bloomberg) — A sex hormone stimulated by excess body fat may trigger deadly ovarian cancer, a new study found.
Researchers at the National Cancer Institute found that, among women who had never taken hormones after menopause, obesity was associated with an almost 80 percent higher risk of ovarian cancer, the deadliest type of gynecological malignancy. Production of the hormone estrogen linked to excess body mass may stimulate the growth of ovarian cells and play a role in the development of cancer after menopause, the study said.
The findings, published in the Feb. 15 issue of the American Cancer Society’s journal Cancer, adds to evidence about the health risks of obesity, a condition the World Health Organization says affects more than 400 million adults. The Geneva-based agency says overweight and obese people have a greater risk of colon, breast and endometrial cancer.
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