Body mass index as a predictor of colorectal cancer

Colorectal cancer is the second most common cancer in the world. Each year in Poland, 16 000 people are diagnosed with colorectal cancer and 9 000 patients die of it. Factors that may increase a chance of developing colorectal cancer include: male sex, advanced age, smoking, and positive family history of this condition. Recently, scientists have discovered that obesity also belongs to the group of risk factors. The present research aims at establishing whether there exists any relationship between BMI and colorectal cancer in Poland.

This research is based on the analysis of the results of a clinical study conducted in the period from May 2011 to December 2014 in another group of 319 patients undergoing colonoscopy in the district hospital in Wejherowo. Colonoscopy results were compared between 136 patients with colorectal cancer and/or dysplastic polyps and 167 healthy patients.

The study revealed that the number of males, elderly people, and smokers was much bigger among patients with colon abnormalities than among healthy people. The multiple factor analysis demonstrates that the body mass index (BMI) was significantly higher among men and women diagnosed with colorectal cancer as compared to healthy patients. Both overweight (BMI reaching from 25.0 to 29.9 kg/m2) and obesity (BMI≥30 kg/m2) were independent risk factors associated with colorectal cancer.

An increased BMI should also be considered as an independent risk factor for colorectal cancer in the Polish population. This may indicate a need for conducting and increasing the frequency of colonoscopic examinations among patients with high BMI in Poland.