PARIS, Mar. 4 (Benin News) –
Tall people are more likely than short people to develop colorectal cancer or colon polyps, which can then become malignant, according to an analysis of several independent studies by researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine.
The research, which was published in Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers & Prevention, presents a novelty over previous studies by including the risk of adenomas, which are precancerous polyps of the colon.
“This is the largest study of its kind to date. It builds on the evidence that tall stature is an overlooked risk factor, and should be considered when evaluating and recommending patients for colorectal cancer screening,” said the researcher. Gérard Mullin.
In this regard, the researcher adds that the study reinforces the links observed between a higher height and the risk of disease.
“One possible reason for this link is that adult height correlates with the size of body organs. More active proliferation in the organs of tall people might increase the likelihood of mutations leading to malignant transformation,” explained study co-author Elinor Zhou.
A total of 47 studies, involving more than 280,000 cases of colorectal cancer and 14,139 cases of colorectal adenoma, were pooled for this study, which also involved 1,459 patients who underwent outpatient colonoscopies to explore the relationship between cancer and bacteria attached to the walls of the colon, called biofilms.
“The results suggest that, overall, taller people in the highest height percentile had a 24% higher risk of developing colorectal cancer than shorter people in the lowest percentile. Every 10 centimeter (regarding 4 inch) increase in height was associated with a 14% increase in the risk of developing colorectal cancer and a 6% increase in the risk of having adenomas,” Mullin said.
