Obesity & Cancer Risk
- Rosie O’Donnell has revealed she’s lost weight by taking the diabetes drug Mounjaro, an FDA-approved drug intended to manage blood sugar levels in adults with type 2 diabetes.
- It’s evident that weight loss injections like Ozempic (semaglutide), Wegovy, (semaglutide), and Zepbound/Mounjaro (tirzepatide) are becoming more popular, but it’s also important to understand obesity’s link to cancer.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says, “Being overweight or having obesity are linked with a higher risk of getting 13 types of cancer.” Some of these cancers include breast, colon, ovarian, and stomach (gastric).
- The National Cancer Institute (NCI) says fat tissue “produces excess amounts of estrogen,” which is associated with an increased risk of certain cancers, including breast, ovarian, and endometrial cancer. Obesity is associated with high levels of insulin, which can lead to colon, kidney, prostate, and endometrial cancer.
- If you’re considering taking a weight loss drug, talk with your care team about whether that’s a good option for you. And make sure you consider good diet and exercise practices as a part of your treatment plan.
The drug she’s been taking is a GLP-1 drug called Tirzepatide, which is sold under the brand names Mounjaro and Zepbound for type-2 diabetes and weight loss.
Read MoreBefore going into detail about her recent weight loss, she added, “It’s been pretty wonderful, I have to say. The people are so loving and so kind, so welcoming. And I’m very grateful.”
She then informed her fans, “I am on Mounjaro for my diabetes and one of the side effects is you lose weight. But it’s also because I had a chef for over two years in Los Angeles and I don’t have a chef now.
“It’s me cooking for Clay and me.”
@rosie tomorrow night im on irelands best talk show #thelatelateshow with host #patrickKIELTY – im honored and thrilled 😁- so tune in if u like 👍🏽 of its also my 63 rd birthday tomorrow! what a great way to celebrate- find me on substack – ROSIEODONNELL25 – with an orange check #speakkindlytoyourself
O’Donnell then noted how her child is a very selective eater and has an eating disorder called Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID). She added, “We’ll get through it. Autism isn’t easy, but I couldn’t love this child anymore.
As for her new clothing size, she continued, “I’m one of those people who always had a weight issue and now that I’m a size large, instead of an XL or a XXL.
“I find it shocking … I really do. I find it completely shocking.”
She also recounting telling a store employee at a ship in Dublin that she no longer knows what size she wears.
O’Donnell recalled that when the store clerk asked her what size she wore, she told the clerk, “I don’t really know anymore.”
Expert Resources On Healthy Living
- SurvivorNetTV Presents ‘How Not To Get Cancer: Diet’ — The Power of Prevention & Healthy Habits
- 8 Secrets to a Long, Healthy Life: Jacques Houot and the Fountain of Youth
- New Hard Evidence That Exercise Measurably Reduces Anxiety– 150 Minutes Per Week Makes The Difference
- Zero Booze is Best For Cancer Prevention & Five Hours Per Week Of Exercise! New American Cancer Society Prevention Guidelines
It’s important to note there are a variety of drugs available right now for weight loss, like Nova Nordisk’s semaglutide—which can be purchased under brand names Ozempic, Weygovy, and Rybelsu—and Tirzepatide, sold under the brand names Mounjaro and Zepbound. Others include Phentermine (Adipex-P, Lomaira), a prescription medication which lessens one’s appetite, Contrave (naltrexone/bupropion), and bupropion (the generic form of Wellbutrin).
Rosie O’Donnell’s Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC) Battle & Other Health Struggles
Rosie O’Donnell had a recent cancer scare after a bump on her face turned out to be basal cell carcinoma (BCC), a highly curable but still serious skin cancer.
O’Donnell took to social media last year to inform her fans of her skin cancer diagnosis and urge others to “get checked.”
What You Need to Know About Basal Cell Carcinoma
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O’Donnell captioned her Instagram post, featuring a photo of the suspicious spot near her eye, “Had this bump near my eye – went to the dermatologist when it started to scab – #basalcell skin cancer. All removed and fine – get checked #skinhealth.”
Prior to that post, the mom of five shared a selfie showing off two bandages over the same part of her face.
View this post on Instagram
O’Donnell, who previously opened up about having a family history of breast cancer, also announced she was “cancer-free” more than 10 years ago after her own breast cancer scare.
At the time, she said she was “as close to perfect as life gets” after undergoing a biopsy and declaring herself “cancer free” after having a biopsy done in 2010.
O’Donnell, who was 48 at the time, revealed she had an MRI and a biopsy done after doctors found two “spots” in her breasts, she wrote in a November 2010 blog post shared on her website, according to the Daily Mail.
The “Now and Then” actress ended up learning that her breast lumps were benign and later wrote about it in a blog post entry titled “Cancer Free.”
The blog post, written in haiku form, read, “a 2 word text/ and everything changes/ thank u/ amen/ babs on o/ as i type/ as close 2 perfect/ as life gets/ and i see the faces/ of the women in the waiting room/ praying they too/ got good news today.”
Prior to that blog post, O’Donnell, who suffered a heart attack in 2012, went into detail about how she underwent testing 18 years after she had an initial lump removed when she was 30 years old.
“I had my first lump removed at 30/thumb sized fatty tissue/i went alone/i was living in los angeles,” she explained on her blog.
She concluded, by pointing out that “over 200 thousand women will be told they have breast cancer this year, 40 thousand will die from it, many more will live on.” As per the Daily Mail, O’Donnell also mentioned how when she was just 10 years old, her mom died of cancer at age 39.
Meanwhile, O’Donnell considers herself “really lucky” to have survived a massive heart attack, saying in an earlier interview on “The Best Podcast Ever,” “It forced me into my body and to be in touch with my body in a way that I never had been.”
“It made me aware of feelings. I can kind of dissociate and do the world from my head and just try to use my intellect and not really pay attention to my body, but this forced me to pay attention,” she explained, according to People.
Living a Healthy Lifestyle
Although O’Donnell has had assistance in her weight loss from Mounjaro, it’s important to remember that one major part of weight loss is eating healthy and good exercise habits, something SurvivorNet experts recommend.
The general recommendations for a healthy lifestyle are the same whether you have cancer or not. Dr. Ken Miller, the Director of Outpatient Oncology at the University of Maryland Greenebaum Cancer Center, has some guidelines for cancer survivors who are concerned about a recurrence:
- Exercise at least two hours a week, and walking counts.
- Eat a low-fat diet. The Women’s Intervention Nutrition Study, which looked at early-stage breast cancer patients, found that a low-fat diet was associated with reduced risk for cancer recurrence, particularly in those with estrogen receptor-negative cancers. Other studies have found that foods with a high glycemic index that are digested quickly and cause a spike in blood sugar may lead to tumor growth in lung cancer patients.
- Eat a colorful diet with lots of fruits and vegetables. The American Cancer Society recommends aiming for two to three cups of vibrant vegetables and fruits each day.
- Maintain a healthy weight. Studies have shown that being obese can increase your risk for several types of cancer.
Dr. Ken Miller says a healthy diet and regular workout routine are important
Cancer Risk and Obesity
Bodyweight can be a sensitive subject for many people on any given day. However, among cancer patients whose treatment and diagnosis may influence their weight, the numbers on the scale fuel an already emotional journey.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says, “Being overweight or having obesity are linked with a higher risk of getting 13 types of cancer.”
Research published in the journal “Cancers” says that “Obesity also increases the risk of dying from cancer and may influence the treatment choices. About 4–8% of all cancers are attributed to obesity.”
Some of the cancers associated with being overweight or obese include:
- Colon
- Breast
- Ovarian
- Esophagus
- Pancreatic
- Multiple myeloma
- Endometrial
- Liver
According to the National Cancer Institute (NCI), fat tissue “produces excess amounts of estrogen,” which is associated with an increased risk of certain cancers, including breast, ovarian, and endometrial cancer. The NCI says a person who is severely obese is “7 times” more likely to be diagnosed with endometrial cancer.
Obesity is associated with high levels of insulin, which can lead to colon, kidney, prostate, and endometrial cancer.
Obesity can affect cancer survivors in various ways, including the chance of cancer recurrence and overall quality of life.
To learn more about your ideal healthy weight, determine your body mass index (BMI).
Body weight that exceeds what the body mass index deems appropriate for your weight and height can help determine body fat content. Although your BMI can help you learn if you are at a healthy weight, underweight, overweight, or obese, other factors may contribute to your overall health.
The NCI analyzed several studies to observe physical activity’s impact on overall cancer risk. The NCI says that “higher levels of physical activity are linked to lower risk of several types of cancer.”
Regular exercise, a balanced diet, and managing stress are some ways people can practice leading a healthy life. For cancer survivors, a healthier lifestyle alongside getting regular checks for recurrence may improve your quality of life.
Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff
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