The founder of the UCSD Cancer Center says being overweight makes you more vulnerable to cancer. KPBS Reporter Tom Fudge reports.
Being overweight can lead to many health problems. And Dr. John Mendelsohn says it makes cancer more dangerous and more difficult to treat. Mendelsohn was the founder of the UCSD Cancer Center, and he attended a cancer symmposium held in San Diego. He says we still don't understand why there's a link between cancer and obesity.
Mendelsohn: We're trying to understand the mechanism. Why, if you're overweight. What do the fat cells produce that stimulates cancer, and we're getting some hints at that. But in the meantime we have the data. It's very fine statistical data. If you look at a thousand patients that are overweight, and a thousand patients who are normal weight, the overweight ones don't do as well.
Mendelsohn adds that not smoking is still the most important preventative measure, when it comes to cancer. Tom Fudge, KPBS news.
