The Charity Cancer Research (CCR) in Britain has reported that more women are developing womb cancer these days compared to 35 years ago. Statistics reveals that obesity plays a major role in women suffering from womb cancer.

The CCR put the present ratio of women developing the disease to 19 for every 100,000 women, about 50 percent higher than the 13 per 100,000 women in 1975. The CCR also counted 7,530 women diagnosed with the cancer of the uterus per year compared to only 4,175 in 1975.

Experts at Cancer Research UK believe reasons behind the rise include more women being overweight or obese and women having fewer or no children. Womb cancer is the fourth most common cancer among British women. Over the last decade, the disease has become the second fastest growing cancer in women after malignant melanoma skin cancer.

Sara Hiom, Cancer Research UK's director of health information, said that women can reduce their risk of developing the disease by keeping a healthy weight, taking regular exercise and reducing the amount of alcohol they drink.

Doctors also blamed obesity for the rise in womb cancer cases claiming that the condition increases two folds the chance of developing tumor. Apparently, there is higher concentration of fatty tissues in the body of obese women and these changes other hormones into oestrogen.

Ciaran Devane, chief executive at Macmillan Cancer Support, said that these figures reflect the number of people getting cancer is increasing and this must be recognized. She said cancer was no longer a death sentence and it was important for appropriate long term care to be in place for cancer survivors.

Womb cancer tends to develop later in life, with women aged 60 to 79 most at risk. The earlier the disease is diagnosed, the more likely treatment will be successful.