Treatment of obesity as a potential complementary approach to cancer therapy

Obesity has long been recognized as a risk factor for diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Recent epidemiological data also associate obesity with cancer risk and progression. For this reason, a combination treatment of obesity along with treatment of the cancer itself may improve patient survival and well-being. As the molecular pathways linking obesity and cancer become better understood, new potential therapy targets are surfacing. In this article, we summarize the mechanisms proposed to account for the obesity–cancer association and discuss approaches to manipulation of adipose tissue as potential interventions aimed at cancer prevention or supplemental therapy.

► Obesity is a treatable condition resulting from overgrowth of adipose tissue.
► Obesity is associated with initiation and/or progression of many cancers.
► Cancer progression is promoted by adipokines secreted outside and inside the tumor.
► Obesity treatment may complement cancer treatments directed at tumor cells.
► Inactivation of mechanisms through which adipose tissue promotes cancer is discussed.