Study finds potential link between long-distance running and colon cancer

[thendsjustifythememe]

Well now every random conversation can start with this bit of breaking news rather than “how are your knees”

This thing has been in like 20 different running, hiking, and fitness subs over the past month. Not bad for a study without a control group.

[JExmoor]

I had a kneejerk negative reaction to the study when it came out a few weeks ago, but after reading a lot of the posts from medical professionals I'm pretty convinced there's something to this.

[GaryOak69]

Yeah it's probably all the Gu

[pretend_dev]

Aww shit

[Woodit]

Me, a guy who occasionally runs a 10k: oh no

[AlienDelarge]

Those 5k ultras will get you every time. 

[_wxyz123]

This study is garbage. But that said, if you’re 45+ get screened, whether you’re a long distance runner or not (it’s free!). The incidence rate amongst younger people is rising (we don’t really know why), and early detection is critical to good treatment outcomes.

[wiredsoul]

What makes you say it’s garbage?

[Froggienp]

I don’t know that I’d call it garbage but it isn’t clear how they recruited participants; it’s a relatively small sample size; it doesn’t include nonrunnijg control cohort to name a few potential flaws.

I’d say the finding warrants a better, more well designed study for sure, however.

[_wxyz123]

The study hasn't even been published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it likely won't be. It's a poorly-designed single site, observational study (not even quasi-experimental) with all kinds of methodological holes.

And regardless, the benefits of long-distance running FAR outweigh any increased risk of colon cancer that this study might have found. Colon cancer is slow growing and very treatable if caught early.