Obesity is a new risk factor, to which more and more research is devoted, related to the development of cancer. Many studies of recent years have drawn attention to the role of adipose tissue as an important internal endocrine organ. In the adipose tissue proteins are produced, referred to by the common name as adipokines. In the case of obesity, the neoplasm cells are constantly stimulated by pro-inflammatory cytokines and adipokines, among which leptin dominates. The studies show that leptin can affect the cancer cells through numerous phenomena, e.g. inflammation, cell proliferation, suppression of apoptosis and angiogenesis. In this literature review we examined the role of leptin in the development of the individual cancers: breast cancer, colorectal cancer, prostate cancer, ovarian cancer, endometrial cancer and brain neoplasms: glioma and meningioma. However, leptin has very complicated mechanisms of action which require better understanding in certain types of cancer.
Keywords: cancer; carcinogenesis; leptin; obesity.