Obesity biggest colon cancer risk factor

Philadelphia -- Among all important risk factors for colon cancer, obesity was the strongest for colorectal cancer in women, a U.S. study found.

Dr. Joseph C. Anderson of Stony Brook University in New York and colleagues examined data from 1,252 women who underwent a colonoscopy and classified the patients according to their age, smoking history, family history of colorectal cancer and body mass index.Obesity was defined as a BMI of 30 or higher.

For smoking, patients were divided into three groups: heavy exposure, low exposure, and no exposure. Patients who were in the heavy exposure group included women who had smoked more than 10 "pack years" and who were currently smoking or had quit in the past 10 years.

The study found that although smoking posed a significant increased risk for colorectal neoplasia, or tumors, researchers found that for women, obesity was the highest attributable risk factor for developing the disease.

The study was presented at the 72nd Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology in Philadelphia.

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