Overweight or obese women who lose at least 5 percent of their
body weight may lower their levels of the type of inflammation
linked with cancer, according to a new study. The findings show
that women who dieted, exercised and lost weight saw their
levels of an inflammation marker called C-reactive protein drop
by 42 percent, and lowered their levels of another inflammation
marker linked to cancer, called interleukin-6, by 23 percent
over the course of a year. "Both obesity and inflammation have
been shown to be related to several types of cancer," said study
researcher Dr. Anne McTiernan, of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer
Research Center in Seattle. Studies have linked obesity to an
increased risk of cancers of the endometrium, colon, pancreas
and kidney. Development of as many as 25 percent of cancers is
likely facilitated by a sedentary lifestyle and higher-than-
normal body weight, McTiernan said. The decreases in
inflammation seen in the study were larger than anti-
inflammatory medications would produce, McTi