International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

More women are being diagnosed with cancer of the uterus because they are opting to have fewer children or none at all, new figures suggest.

Over the past 30 years, rates have increased by nearly 50 per cent, reports the UK Daily Mail.

Women choosing careers over children affects their hormones, which puts them at increased risk of developing the cancer, according to doctors.

They believe obesity could be a contributing factor in between 30 and 50 per cent of all cases of womb cancer but there are no official figures showing the effect of fewer or no offspring.

Jessica Harris, health information officer at Cancer Research UK, was quoted by the news provider as saying: "Women are more exposed to womb cancer when there are higher levels of the hormone oestrogen in their blood.

"This obviously changes during their menstrual cycle but it will also decrease when women are pregnant. This means that those who have more children have less time over their lives when they are exposed to the risk."

According to the latest data from Cancer Research UK, there were 1,741 deaths from cancer of the uterus in 2008 in the UK, accounting for 2.3 per cent of all cancer mortalities.

Posted by Alexandra George