A new study examining how obesity is related to cancer risk discovered new associations between obesity and the development of eight additional cancers in addition to five previously known cancers.

Researchers from the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) pored through over 1,000 epidemiological studies to find "excess body fatness" is also linked to the risk of developing blood (multiple myeloma), brain (meningioma), gallbladder, gastric, liver, pancreatic, ovarian and thyroid cancers.

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Researchers found obese people had 1.8 times the risk for developing liver cancer; 4.8 times for esophageal adenocarcinoma and 7.1 times as high for uterine cancer. They also confirmed that for some of these cancers, as your weight goes up, so does the risk.

But instead of saying overweight/obesity increases the risk for cancer, the IARC presented its findings in a more diplomatic way, which was by saying "the absence of excess body fatness reduces the risk of cancers."

IARC also confirmed its former findings published in 2002 five cancers -- colorectal, esophageal (adenocarcinoma), renal cell carcinoma, breast cancer in postmenopausal women and uterine endometrial cancer - are linked to obesity.

There is also some evidence suggesting a link for three other cancers: fatal cancer of the prostate, breast cancer in men and diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

"The identification of new obesity-related cancer sites will add to the number of deaths worldwide attributable to obesity," warned IACR.

There were an estimated 4.5 million deaths worldwide attributable to overweight and obesity in 2013. Obesity is a worldwide problem and up to 40% of the population is overweight or obese in some countries or regions.

Some 640 million adults worldwide were obese in 2014, a six fold increase from 1975. There were 110 million obese children and adolescents in 2013, twice the number in 1975.

"I think the main takeaway point is that your health and specifically your body fatness is an important factor for many types of cancer," said Dr. Richard Lee, Medical Director of the Integrative and Supportive Oncology Program at the University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center.

"Patients should understand that they can decrease the risk for developing cancer and improving overall survivorship," by keeping their weight below obesity thresholds, he said.

One positive outcome from this study is obese people that lose weight appear to reduce their cancer risk.

"Lifestyle factors such as eating a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight and exercising, in addition to not smoking, can have a significant impact on reducing cancer risk," said Graham Colditz, MD, Dr PH and deputy director of the School of Public Health at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, who chaired the IARC Working Group.

"Public health efforts to combat cancer should focus on these things that people have some control over."

Tagsobesity, Cancer, International Agency for Research on Cancer, IARC, overweight