Rise in cancers 'caused by weight' [View all]

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-43502144

Rise in cancers 'caused by weight'

By Alex Therrien
Health reporter, BBC News

7 hours ago

Being overweight or obese is a growing cause of cancer in the UK while cases caused by smoking are falling, according to a large study.

Cancer Research UK found more than a third of all cases of cancer were avoidable - some 135,000. The charity also found that excess weight now caused 6.3% of all cancer cases - up from 5.5% in 2011 - while smoking as a cause had declined. It said more action was needed to tackle the "health threat" of obesity.
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Across the UK, smoking remained by far the leading cause of preventable cancer, although it dropped from 19.4% in 2011 to 15.1%. Second was being overweight or obese, and third was exposure to the sun and sunbeds.
(snip)