Diabetic men linked with cancer risk

Wed, 31 Aug 2011
A new study has found that men who suffer from type 2 diabetes are at a greater risk of developing bowel cancer. The discovery has prompted warnings about the need for regular screening checks to detect signs of the disease.

The Australian research, which involved nearly 1,300 people with the metabolic condition, showed that men who are aged between 55 and 84 with type 2 diabetes had a greater likelihood of developing bowel cancer as compared to people without diabetes, and also revealed that both men and women with diabetes are at a heightened risk from all types of cancer. The team have recommended that GPs should look at including screening for bowel cancer as an integral part of controlling diabetes.

Study leader Tim Davis, professor of medicine at the University of Western Australia, commented "On the strength of these results, doctors should consider lowering the screening threshold for these patients."

He added "Checking for faecal blood is one option but a colonoscopy is far more thorough and could become an integral part of diabetes management."

However, the research did show that men with type 2 diabetes did not face a higher risk of developing prostate cancer than men who were healthy, and that women with type 2 diabetes were at a similar risk of breast cancer as the rest of the population.

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