Preventing Cancer: Study Finds Dramatic Benefits of Weight-Loss Surgery

Surgeons make a post bariatric surgery to Yuli Cruz (unseen) at a clinic center, in Cali, Colombia, on October 16, 2014. Cruz, a Colombian secretary, is undergoing a post bariatric surgery to remove skin excess after a bariatric surgery made her lose about 50 kilos in weight. Luis Robayo/AFP/Getty Images

A study evaluating the effects of bariatric surgery on obese women most at risk for cancer has found that the weight-loss surgery slashed participants’ weight by a third and eliminated precancerous uterine growths in those who had them. Other effects included improving patients’ physical quality of life, improving their insulin levels and ability to use glucose – which may reduce their risk for diabetes – and even altering the composition of their gut bacteria.