Researchers have confirmed the link between type-2 diabetes and an increased risk of colorectal cancer. The World Health Organization (WHO) fingers cancer as the leading cause of death worldwide. Cancer accounted for 7.4 million deaths in 2004; 639,000 were due to colon cancer.
As for diabetes, WHO statistics show 5% of deaths worldwide can be attributed to diabetes, and that number is expected to double within the next 10 years.
The new study, published in the journal Gastroenterology, involved 184,000 older U.S. adults followed up on for 15 years. Results showed men with diabetes had a higher risk of developing colon cancer. No higher risk was found in women.
Men with diabetes were 24% more likely to develop colon cancer than diabetes-free men and men using insulin to treat diabetes had a 36% higher risk of colorectal cancer than men without diabetes.
Researchers speculate that diabetes might contribute to cancer by chronically elevating blood levels of insulin. Insulin can increase the growth factors of cancer cells, such as escalating cancer’s ability to spread throughout the body.
Also, the scientists suggest that the reason diabetes may not be tied to colon cancer in women, is that women may be better at monitoring their blood sugar than men.
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