Excess Weight in Early Adulthood Raises Pancreatic Cancer Risk

Does age affect the known association between excess weight and risk for pancreatic cancer? In this 4-year case-control study, researchers at a Texas cancer center collected lifelong weight information from 841 pancreatic cancer patients and 754 healthy people matched by age (mean, 61), race (90% white), and sex (60% male).

Participants who were overweight (body-mass index, 25–29.9 kg/m²) from ages 14 to 39 or were obese (BMI, ≥30) from ages 20 to 49 had a roughly twofold excess risk for pancreatic cancer in an analysis adjusted for other risk factors. Being overweight or obese from ages 20 to 49 was also associated with an earlier onset (by several years) of pancreatic cancer. Patients who were overweight or obese later in life (age range, …