Evaluation of cancer risk in patients with periodontal diseases

Abstract

Background/aim: In this study, we aimed to assess the cancer risk among patients with periodontal disease.Materials and methods: Patients diagnosed with periodontal diseases at Hacettepe University between 2007 and 2012 were includedand data on the diagnosis of any cancer after periodontal disease were collected from patient files. The age- and sex-standardizedincidence rates (SIRs) were calculated using Turkish National Cancer Registry 2013 data.Results: A total of 5199 patients were included. Median follow-up was 7.2 years. Patients with periodontal diseases had 17% increasedrisk of cancer compared with the expected counts for the corresponding age and sex groups (SIR: 1.17; 95% CI: 1.04–1.3, P = 0.006). Theincreased cancer risk was statistically significant in women (SIR: 1.24; 95% CI: 1.05–1.45, P = 0.008) but not in men. Among womenwith periodontal disease, the risks of breast cancer (SIR: 2.19) and head and neck cancer (SIR: 4.71) were significantly increased. Amongmen, the risks of prostate cancer (SIR: 1.84), head and neck cancer (SIR: 3.55), and hematological cancers (SIR: 1.76) were significantlyincreased.Conclusion: This study showed that periodontal diseases were associated with increased risk of several cancers. Besides other wellknown benefits for health, the provision of oral/dental health should be considered and employed as a cancer prevention measure.