The researchers studied close to 1.5 million 18-year-old men who enlisted for military service between 1968 and 2005.
It turns out that those who had a high BMI at the time of sampling run a higher risk of suffering from 17 of the 18 forms of cancer studied, in almost all organs.
The higher the BMI, the greater the cancer risk.
– Given the alarming development of obesity in childhood and adolescence, this study reinforces the need to deploy powerful resources to reverse the trend, says Aron Onerup, postdoctoral fellow at the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg and first author of the studies.
Greatest risk of cancer in the abdomen
The very highest risk is for cancer in the abdomen – where unhealthy weight at the age of 18 appeared to explain upwards of 25 percent of cases in Sweden today.
The only form of cancer where you can’t see a link to unhealthy weight is prostate cancer. A likely explanation is that men of normal weight more often seek care for prostate problems, which leads to more early care contacts and diagnoses.