Obesity is a Form of Cancer

It was a Eureka moment. The kind where you look at well-known facts in a new light. Facts:

1. Fat cells grow out of control in obesity: a) individual cells grow larger and don't die (hypertrophy); and b) fat cells proliferate (hyperplasia);

2. Individual fat cells that grow out-of-control-larger develop tiny blood vessels that feed the cell (angiogenesis).

...ALL of these characteristics are standard to cancer. No wonder obesity is "associated with cancer" - it IS a form of cancer. Duh.

Before anyone freaks out - obesity obviously is a very slow form of cancer like most skin cancers - my dad had skin cancer for 50 years, and that's NOT what killed him.

Most important, the right diet can heal cancer - good food is not just "healthy," it's medicine.

But let's call a spade a spade.

Does anyone else see this?





Adaptations to environmental stress: Growth alterations

Angiogenesis

On ATS: Infections cause 1 in 6 cancers worldwide

I'd settle for fattnesss is not due to will power, it is certainly a sign something is not right.
lack of nutrition is certainly a root cause of both, and people who go to full proper green nutrition often solve both types of isssues
sandf for the discussion though

Obesity is not a form of cancer and honestly, to say that it is, just insults people with serious illness.
Some forms of obesity may be virus related (like cervical cancer)
But that's as close as you can get to saying it's a form of cancer.
(in my humble - non doctor - opinion).

Anything that can be cured by putting your hands in your pockets instead of stuffing Twinkies into your face isn't cancer.

Deny ignorance.

Originally posted by soficrow
Before anyone freaks out - obesity obviously is a very slow form of cancer like most skin cancers - my dad had skin cancer for 50 years, and that's NOT what killed him.

Just to point out that we are on same page, my family unfortunately has a rich history of cancer and I'm afraid I'm going to die due to cancer as well. That's how it went down.

Now, I think that your analogy is simply wrong.

And oh yeah, when I was still active in mountaineering, there used to be that theory that for high-altitude climbing you need to get weight because this is the most efficient way to carry energy as you are trying to summit. It actually makes sense to me. I lost a ton of weight when doing McKinley.

reply to post by soficrow


Just another poor excuse to eat until you drop.

Erm.

Hypertrophy, hyperplasia and angiogenesis ALL describe tumour activity. ...The question is, Is it benign or malignant?

reply to post by buddhasystem


Thanks.

I think that your analogy is simply wrong.

It's not an analogy - it's a scientific description of the cell actions and effects, which happen to be the same in obesity and cancer.

reply to post by soficrow

obesity obviously is a very slow form of cancer like most skin cancers -

It's a good analogy, but the cell formations/deformations in cancer happen for very different reasons.

Personally, i think there is a link between FEAR (insecurity) and obesity, but I have no statistical data to offer.

Cancer from Obesity Can someone develop cancer from obesity? Compelling evidence suggests that yes, obesity causes cancer. However, researchers are still trying to figure out exactly how these two conditions interact.

Obesity Statistics
Obesity statistics show steadily increasing numbers of overweight and obese Americans. The Journal of the American Medical Association (2010) reports that as of 2008, one third of adult Americans were obese. Obesity increases the risk of multiple health conditions, including diabetes, hypertension and cancer.

Developing Cancer from Obesity
The link between cancer and obesity isn't universal. Only certain cancers are associated with obesity. According to the American Cancer Society (2003), obesity increases the risk of:

•Breast cancer (after menopause)
•Cervical cancer
•Colon or rectal cancer
•Esophageal cancer
•Gall bladder cancer
•Kidney cancer
•Liver cancer
•Multiple myeloma
•Non-Hodgkin lymphoma
•Ovarian cancer
•Pancreas cancer
•Stomach cancer (in men)
•Uterine cancer.
How Obesity Causes Cancer
Exactly how obesity causes cancer is open to debate, although evidence suggests that the cancer's location is just one of the many factors associated with obesity. For instance, obesity affects estrogen levels, perhaps explaining why women can develop uterine cancer from obesity. Obesity also increases the risk of gastroesophageal reflux disease, a known risk factor for esophageal cancer.

Mortality Rates, Cancer and Obesity
Cancer risk factors affect both treatment options and mortality rates. The American Cancer Society (2008) reports that about 14 to 20 percent of cancer deaths in the U.S. can be attributed to excess weight or obesity problems. The report concludes that well over one third of Americans are now overweight, with overweight prevalence more than tripling among adolescents over the past 20 years alone.

Preventing Cancer from Obesity
Since cancer risk increases with obesity, losing weight may lower your risk of obesity-related cancers, among other health benefits. Even a small weight loss can improve health and lower the risk of diabetes or other conditions related to obesity.

While significant research indicates that obesity causes cancer, relatively few studies have determined whether weight loss actually lowers this risk. The increased risk of cancer in the obese suggests that weight loss could reduce cancer risk, but no larger scale clinical trials have explicitly described the relationship between the two.

www.tree.com...

don't forget though fat is stored as a natural mechanism

You would have to be able to closely monitor people's diets and assure that they are not eating incorrectly for their body type. You would then have to assure that they are reasonably active and that the obesity isn't caused by some other obesity-inducing disease or syndrome. And eventually you could get around to liposuctioning these people and see if the cells grow back.

You can't just call it cancer because you think it fits the bill. It most assuredly doesn't.

Originally posted by UltimateSkeptic1
Anything that can be cured by putting your hands in your pockets instead of stuffing Twinkies into your face isn't cancer.

Deny ignorance.

There's a number of people who would disagree with you - many people believe eating certain foods will cure some cancer.

Nearly everyone agrees, good nutrition will PREVENT many cancers.

(BTW, there are many people who stuff twinkies in there face and are skinny and many over weight people who eat healthy - so try not to degrade people).

reply to post by DeReK DaRkLy

It's a good analogy, but the cell formations/deformations in cancer happen for very different reasons.

Can you prove it? Can you provide any evidence to show that "the cell formations/deformations in cancer happen for very different reasons"? Like, what are the reasons for hypertrophy, hyperplasia and angiogenesis in obesity versus cancer?

It's true that hypertrophy and hyperplasia can be understood as adaptations to environmental influences, but angiogenesis certainly is not - and the negative "environmental influences" in cancer and obesity seem to overlap.

reply to post by Danbones


And don't forget that cancer, like obesity, results from cell adaptations run amuck.

...which came first? The chicken or the egg?

F & btw

reply to post by FlyersFan


I know you're smart - so why don't you try to ignore the engineered cultural memes, and develop your opinion based on a bit of science?

Standard markers for cancer and pre-cancer include hypertrophy, hyperplasia and angiogenesis - all are present in obesity. And angiogenesis is really special.

Angiogenesis modulates adipogenesis and obesity

Substantial evidence shows that neoplastic and nonneoplastic tissue growth is dependent on angiogenesis. …

Approximately 65% of adults in the United States and more than half of the population in the rest of developed countries are overweight or obese (1). The prevalence in children in all developed countries is about 15% and this number is expected to increase significantly in the near future. Obesity is a complex metabolic disorder that is commonly associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, coronary heart disease, stroke, dyslipidemia, gallbladder disease, hepatic steatosis, sleep apnea, stroke, endometrial disorder, and cancer (2–4). Interestingly, most of these obesity-related disorders are closely associated with vascular dysfunctions. For example, hyper- or hypovascularization could result in onset and progression of diabetic ocular and kidney complications, cardiovascular disease, stroke, and cancer (5–12). Adipose tissue is highly vascularized, and each adipocyte is nourished by an extensive capillary network (13–15). Adipose tissue is considered as the largest endocrine gland because it produces free fatty acids, hormones, growth factors, and cytokines such as leptin, adiponectin, resistin, VEGF, HGF, IGF-1, angiogenin, IL-6, TNF-α, and angiopoietins (Angs). ….

more...

Hyperplasia is a common preneoplastic (pre-cancerous) response to stimulus. Microscopically cells resemble normal cells but are increased in numbers. Sometimes cells may also be increased in size (hypertrophy).[1] Hyperplasia is different from hypertrophy in that the adaptive cell change in hypertrophy is an increase in cell size, whereas hyperplasia involves an increase in the number of cells.

Adipose tissue grows by two mechanisms: hyperplasia (cell number increase) and hypertrophy (cell size increase).

…adipocyte size influences several metabolic functions
(6 –10). …

Among the fourteen genes with markedly higher expression in large compared with small adipocytes, five were classified as immune-related; E-selectin, inter- leukin (IL)-8, SAA, C1q receptor 1, and CXCL2 also known as MIP-2 or macrophage inflammatory protein-2. Components of the metabolic syndrome, such as obesity and type 2 diabetes, are associated with a systemic increase in inflammatory markers (30 –32). ...

And...

Obese rodents and obese humans have increased expression of TNF α in the adipose tissue.

…tumor necrosis factor (TNF) has been implicated in both cancer development and progression in some preclinical models. In particular, as a central mediator of inflammation, TNF might represent one of the molecular links between chronic inflammation and the subsequent development of malignant disease. Furthermore, deregulated TNF expression within the tumor microenvironment appears to favor malignant cell tissue invasion, migration and ultimately metastasis formation.

Tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) is a multifunctional cytokine that has been implicated as mediator of diverse physiologic and pathophysiologic events. These processes include inflammation, cellular survival, growth, differentiation and apoptosis. …

…in addition to mediating inflammation and apoptosis, cytokines play a critical role in the control and maintenance of signalling pathways that regulate mammalian physiology in multiple organ systems. …

reply to post by soficrow

It's true that hypertrophy and hyperplasia can be understood as adaptations to environmental influences, but angiogenesis certainly is not

Why not?

Hypertrophy, hyperplasia and angiogenesis are signs of growth, not specific to cancerous growth. Also, fat cells in (primary) obesity are still safely under the influence of regulatory factors, contrary to cancer.

reply to post by Maslo

fat cells in (primary) obesity are still safely under the influence of regulatory factors

Really? Safely? Ref?

I'd settle for fattnesss is not due to will power, it is certainly a sign something is not right

Obesity is not a form of cancer unless you got any medical facts to back that up with
Obesity is not having the willpower to stop shovelling pies cream cakes kebabs and chips down your chomp hole and that is just breakfast
Eating healthy diet and taking some exercise would solve this problem

Cran

reply to post by soficrow

There was no obesity in Bergen-Belsen.

Carbohydrates make you fat.

reply to post by soficrow

Can you prove it? Can you provide any evidence to show that "the cell formations/deformations in cancer happen for very different reasons"?

Umm.. because all fat isn't cancerous and all cancer isn't in fat cells. Cells are not mutated in fat production. Fat is normal and healthy in the correct amount... our brains contain fat and cholesterol. We need it to stay alive.

People do not die from excess fat, but rather the strain placed on the body (e.g., heart).
Cancer is an anomaly that happens to a cell, but fat production is a normal process.

All they have in common is that in both cancer and obesity there is an excess occurrence.
Sorry, your theory doesn't hold radiation with me.