Researchers find a strange link between the marathon race and cancer

Some of the most fit people in the world may have a single health risk. New research reveals a possible link between the marathon race and colorectal cancer.

The oncologists of the Inova Schar Cancer Institute in Virginia conducted the study, which examined the settlers of relatively young people who had organized several long -distance breeds. They found that these runners had a much higher rate of having potentially dangerous adenomas (a type of polyp) than expected for their age. Although the results are preliminary and require more confirmation, they may indicate a real link between colorectal cancer and extreme physical activity.

“He tells us that there is a signal here,” David Lieberman, a gastroenterologist and professor emeritus of Oregon Health and Science University unconvilled to study on Tuesday. “We would not have been expected at these high-risk adenomas rates, which are precursor lesions of cancer, in an age group like this.”

A mysterious trend

The main researcher Timothy Cannon was inspired to study after having treated three young patients with colorectal cancer, who had all run ultramarathons (defined as any breed greater than 26.2 miles). Not only were his patients in good shape, but they were also much younger than the typical case, the oldest was 40 years.

In 2022, Cannon and his colleagues began recruiting endurance athletes for their prospective study. The volunteers had all ran at least two ultramarathons or five regular marathons; They also had no family history of colorectal cancer or other apparent risk factors. All in all, 100 athletes aged 35 to 50 participated and received colonoscopies.

The researchers went to look for advanced adenomas in the settlers of their volunteers, relatively large or otherwise unusual polyps. Although these growths are themselves benign, they have a higher risk of becoming cancerous than other polyps. Then they compared the search rate of these polyps in their athletes with historical trends.

According to researchers, around 1.2% of people in quarantine at an average risk of colorectal cancer have advanced adenomas. In contrast, 15% of the runners they studied had them, while almost half had polyps in general.

“Taking into account refined screening strategies for this population is justified,” wrote researchers in their study.

There remains a lot to understand

The team presented its results earlier this year at the annual conference of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. This means that this study has not yet undergone the official peer review process. The authors are also quick to note that their work is not definitive proof that the endurance race can cause colorectal cancer.

Assuming that this link is causal, there is the burning question of why. Like even the joggers of the 5K weekend know it, running can sometimes trigger episodes of gastrointestinal distress (the diarrhea of the homonymous runner). These injuries are sometimes caused by a temporarily limited blood flow to the intestines that damage nearby cells. It is possible, researchers speculate, that extreme runners who regularly experience this loss of blood flow can develop the type of chronic inflammation which makes cancer more likely to emerge.

At this stage, however, this is only a hypothesis for what can happen here. Researchers say that future studies should try to confirm their results and untangle the causes and risk factors that could explain this higher potential risk.

That said, this research should not scare anyone to run or any other form of cardio. The many advantages for the health of regular physical activity – which mainly include a lower risk of at least eight different types of cancer – always prevail over the risks for the average person.