Weight management

Suggested

2 studies · 1 recommendation

Last updated: February 25, 2026

Suggested2 studies

Maintaining healthy body weight reduces liver cancer mortality risk by up to 80%

A large prospective cohort study (JACC Study) tracking 72,473 participants over 19 years and an IARC consensus statement drawing on multiple meta-analyses consistently link excess body fatness to elevated liver cancer risk. In the JACC cohort, men with BMI ≥25 kg/m² faced a 65% higher liver cancer mortality risk (HR 1.65, 95% CI: 1.05–2.60), while underweight men (BMI <18.5) showed even greater risk (HR 1.95, 95% CI: 1.07–3.54). The IARC Working Group reported pooled relative risks of 1.2–1.5 for overweight and 1.5–1.8 for obesity, with the highest BMI category carrying an 80% increased risk (RR 1.8, 95% CI: 1.6–2.1) and a significant dose-response relationship. These findings held across geographic regions and both sexes, establishing liver cancer among cancers with sufficient evidence linking excess body fatness to increased risk.

Evidence

Body fatness and cancer - viewpoint of the IARC working group

Authors: Anderson, Annie S., Baker, Jennifer L., Bianchini, Franca, Breda, João, Byers, Tim, Clearly, Margot P., Colditz, Graham, Di Cesare, Mariachiara, Gapstur, Susan M., Grosse, Yann, Gunter, Marc, Herbert, Ronald A., Hursting, Stephen D., Kaaks, Rudolf, Lauby-Secretan, Béatrice, Leitzmann, Michael, Ligibel, Jennifer, Loomis, Dana, Renehan, Andrew, Romieu, Isabelle, Scoccianti, Chiara, Shimokawa, Isao, Straif, Kurt, Thompson, Henry J., Ulrich, Cornelia M., Wade, Katlin, Weiderpass, Elisabete

Published: August 24, 2016

The IARC Handbook Working Group identified liver cancer as one of eight newly classified cancer sites with sufficient evidence that absence of excess body fatness lowers cancer risk. Meta-analyses showed relative risks of 1.2 to 1.5 for overweight and 1.5 to 1.8 for obesity, with a pooled relative risk of 1.8 (95% CI, 1.6–2.1) for the highest BMI category versus normal BMI. A significant positive dose-response relationship was documented. Results were consistent across different geographic regions when studies from multiple areas were available. Stratification according to sex generally showed similarly increased risks among men and women. This cancer type was newly added to the list of cancers with sufficient evidence since the previous 2002 IARC evaluation.

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Body Mass Index and Weight Change During Adulthood Are Associated With Increased Mortality From Liver Cancer: The JACC Study

Authors: Iso Hiroyasu, Li Yuanying, Tamakoshi Akiko, Wakai Kenji, Yamagishi Kazumasa, Yatsuya Hiroshi, 山岸良匡

Published: May 1, 2013

In a prospective cohort of 31,018 men and 41,455 women aged 40-79 years followed for a median of 19 years (JACC Study), 527 liver cancer deaths occurred. Among men without history of liver disease, BMI <18.5 kg/m² carried a multivariable HR of 1.95 (95% CI: 1.07-3.54) and BMI ≥25 kg/m² carried an HR of 1.65 (95% CI: 1.05-2.60), compared with BMI 21.0-22.9 kg/m². BMI was positively associated with liver cancer mortality among all women.

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