Fat women need more scans OVERWEIGHT women should have breast screening more frequently because their tumours are harder to spot, research suggests. Swedish scientists found overweight women were a third more likely to have breast tumours diagnosed betwe

hormones such as oestrogen, testosterone and insulin which drive tumour growth. This could mean aggressive cancers appear and grow rapidly between scans.

The findings, by researchers at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, are particularly relevant as 58 per cent of British women are overweight.

Sally Greenbrook, policy manager at Breast Cancer Now, said: ‘Ultimately, we want to be able to offer more screening to those most at risk and less to those at least risk, maximising the benefits of routine screening while minimising the risks.’