Clinical stages of colorectal cancer diagnosed in obese and overweight individuals in the Polish Colonoscopy Screening Program

Abstract

Background Obesity is a known risk factor of colorectal cancer (CRC). However, precise interconnections between excessive body fat and CRC are still vague. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess whether stage of CRC detected in overweight and obese individuals differs from individuals with normal body mass index (BMI). A secondary aim of this study was to elucidate whether overweight and obesity influence the overall survival in CRC. Methods This study was a cross‐sectional analysis of 163,129 individuals who underwent screening colonoscopy performed on data from a prospectively maintained database of the Polish Colonoscopy Screening Program. Results Overweight and obese individuals present with a less advanced CRC in screening setting ( p = 0.014). This trend is the most pronounced in males ( p = 0.001). Univariable and multivariable analyses revealed that obesity was a negative predictor of detection of advanced CRC with odds ratio 0.72 (95% confidence interval 0.52–1.00; p = 0.047). Furthermore, overweight and obesity were not statistically significant predictors of risk of death ( p = 0.614 and p = 0.446, respectively). Conclusions Obese screenees present with a less advanced disease in comparison to non‐obese. Moreover, survival stratified by clinical stage seems to not be influenced by BMI category. Therefore, a higher proportion of early diagnosed cancers can potentially create a survival benefit in this group.