Private MD News

Diabetes tied to increased cancer risk for women

Category: Autoimmune Diseases

Women with type 2 diabetes may want to consider seeking genital cancer testing, as a recent study has found that the disease significantly increases a woman's risk for several types of cancer.

Researchers discovered that type 2 diabetes causes an insulin-like hormone to circulat throughout the body. Interestingly, this hormone has been shown to reduce a man's risk for prostate cancer, but this study found that it increases a woman's risk for colon and ovarian cancer.

Dr Gabriel Chodick, who designed the study, said that the hormone appears to interact with female reproductive organs in such a way that leads to cancerous growths.

"For men, this study is good news," he said. "But the opposite is true for women. The interaction of diabetes and female hormones appears to exaggerate the risk, and make certain organs like the uterus and ovaries more receptive to certain kinds of cancer."

While the news is discouraging for women with diabetes, Chodick said that both of these cancers are highly treatable when they are discovered early, and urged frequent cancer testing.