WEIGHT-LOSS surgery – such as stomach stapling – could reduce cancer risk in obese women, according to new research published.

A group of just over 2,000 Swedish patients who underwent operations to reduce their weight were monitored for an average of just over a decade, as well as a similar-sized group of obese patients who received standard treatment such as nutritional advice.

Scientists found that female patients who had surgery were 42% less likely to develop cancer. But there was no change to the incidence of cancer in men.

But researchers said they found no link between the lowered incidence of cancer and the patients’ weight loss or reduced calorie intake.

They say that more research is needed to pinpoint exactly how the surgery acts to reduce a patient’s cancer risk.

The authors, based at Sahlgrenska University Hospital, in Gothenburg, conclude: “In our study, the significant reduction in overall cancer incidence in the female surgery group emanated from a variety of cancer types, indicating a broad effect of bariatric surgery.”

Dr Andrew G Renehan, of the University of Manchester’s School of Cancer, said of the findings in the paper, published in the Lancet Oncology: “For women, the greatest cancer-prevention effects from weight reduction are likely to be for post-menopausal breast and endometrial cancers, two hormone-sensitive malignancies, the effects of which might manifest within a decade.”