Background

Literature presents conflicting results regarding the impact of bariatric surgery on the incidence of colorectal cancer. Presented meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the effect of bariatric surgery on the risk of developing colorectal cancer in patients with obesity.

Methods

PubMed and SCOPUS were searched for relevant articles. Articles published by the 26th of November 2021 were retrieved; data were extracted according to the evidence-based PICO model and analysed using a random-effects model to estimate the pooled relative risk (RR) and its 95 % confidence interval. The heterogeneity of studies was tested and quantified using Cochran’s Q.

Results

The initial search yielded 327 articles. The thorough evaluation resulted in 13 papers, which were analysed. A total number of 3 233 044 patients were included in the meta-analysis. The pooled estimate of the RR was 0.63 [95% CI 0.50 to 0.79]. Heterogeneity: Chi² = 107.96, df = 12 (P < 0.001); I² = 89%.

Conclusions

Patients who underwent bariatric surgery had a 37% reduction in the risk of developing colorectal cancer compared with patients with obesity who had no surgery.