Becoming fat could be a prominent factor which is likely to cause four out of 10 cancers, as per the findings of a major study.

Obesity can now be linked to 32 types of tumour, which are 19 more than previously thought, said experts.

For up to 45 years, the “groundbreaking” research by Lund University in Sweden tracked 4.1 million people and analysed 332,501 cases of cancer.

The research discovered that up to 40% of the cases were contributed to by the patient’s weight.

Moreover, excess flab was newly linked to more tumour types than the 13 officially recognised by the International Agency for Research on Cancer in 2016, according to The US Sun.

These included cancers in the mouth, throat, stomach and brain.

Cancers could be avoided by staying slim

Study author Dr Ming Sun said: “Our findings suggest that the impact of obesity on cancer might be greater than previously known.”

“It is a risk factor for more cancers, especially of rarer kinds, and some of these have never before been investigated in relation to obesity,” she said.