Diabetes increases risk of breast and colon cancer

AMSTERDAM—People with diabetes have an increased risk of developing and dying from certain cancers, according to a meta-analysis with two million patients reported at the 2013 European Cancer Congress in Amsterdam. Researchers found a 23% increased risk of developing breast cancer among those with (mainly Type II) diabetes and a 38% increased risk of dying from it, compared to patients without the disease. In the study it was found that diabetes also conferred a 26% increased risk of developing colon cancer and a 30% increased risk of dying from that. Lead investigator Kristin De Bruijn from Erasmus University Medical Center, in Rotterdam, Netherlands, discussed her findings with AudioMedica.com