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the reason for the increased risk for colon cancer? Some researchers believe so. But if things like insulin or diets are responsible for the relationship between colon cancer and obesity, why wouldn’t colon cancer appear at equal rates among obese men and women? Researchers have a theory about this too. Some researchers theorize that, as with breast cancer, estrogen may be playing a role in colon-cancer rates in obese women. However, in the case of colon cancer, estrogen may actually be having an opposite effect. It may actu- ally protect against colon-cancer development whereas it spurs breast-cancer development. As we already learned, excess fat later in life translates into more estrogen. So, while this increased estrogen greatly increases a woman’s risk of developing breast cancer, it seems to reduce her risk of developing colon cancer. In the end, estrogen may be responsible for the differences in colon cancer rates in men and women.

Esophageal Cancer

According to the NCI, overweight and obese people are twice as likely as healthy-weight people to develop esophageal cancer (cancer of the esophagus).

A Stealthy Invader: Cancer / 63