to point out it is more likely for cancer to cause obesity than for obesity to cause cancer

[Nimbostratus100]

Cos I am so sick of smug ignoramuses being so superior and judgemental.

I was not overweight until I had cancer. I had a MBI of 22 until I had to start taking massive continuous doses of steroids alongside chemotherapy.

Obesity is a medical problem, Obesity does cause health problems. Obesity is a contributing factor to some cancers. The WHO estimates obesity is a contributary factor in around 3-4% of cancers. That all. And there is no way of knowing which individual cancers, that is a population level estimate. And it is a contributary factor, not a cause.

So can we ditch this attitude of "o well, you did this to yourself" every time people come across a fat person with cancer.

Thank you

That's not what you claimed in the OP though
You said that cancer is MORE like to to cause obesity than obesity is to cause cancer. This isn't a good statistic. I feel like you've just made it up to be honest. Your obesity was caused by your cancer treatment but to extrapolate that to a statistic the way you did is incorrect.

I'm so sorry, but you're so wrong. You're quoting research over 10 years old from WHO. I work in cancer research and it is most definitely a leading cause, and only becoming more prominent as society gets heavier. I teeter between overweight and obese myself so I am not saying this from a judging viewpoint, just a factual one. Anyone who looks at someone with cancer and thinks, 'it's your fault because you're fat' is a disgusting person regardless!

OP I'm sorry about your diagnosis and hope you make good progress.

I'm not in the habit of judging anyone's body size, but it's important to be honest with people.

We know skinny people who exercise can develop cancers, diabetes and other hideous conditions. But we also know that people who are overweight and obese are more likely to develop those conditions.

And as you and other posters have pointed out so eloquently, losing weight when you have an underlying health condition becomes a lot harder.

Yup. Me too. I'm a size 20 after all chemo and other drugs. The side effectevery single drug I'm on is weight gain.

I can't shift it.

So can we ditch this attitude of "o well, you did this to yourself" every time people come across a fat person with cancer.

I think that we need to ditch the idea that obese people did it to themselves to become fat. It's not an anorexics fault that they're thin: they have a mental health disease. It's not an obese persons fault that they're fat: they have a mental health disease.

I know quite a few people who have had cancer, mostly breast cancer, but also lung, throat, brain, colon and stomach cancer. Not one was overweight before or during treatment, in fact most lost weight due to how ill the chemo made them feel.
That's not to say weight isn't a contributing factor - of course it is if repeated studies have indicated this is the case. But it's certainly not a given that you must be overweight to develop it.
But it is also common knowledge (I would have thought) that long term steroid use can lead to weight gain? Isn't it? Thing is, you can't walk around with a sign saying 'I'm not fat due to overeating I'm on steroids'. Less judgement all around is needed.

Predominantly I'm not fat because of MH issues though. I'm fat because of steroids and an under active thyroid that doesn't meet the uk standard for medication.

Wow! You're incredibly judgemental over people's sizes. Unbelievable