Allergies and the Subsequent Risk of Cancer among Elderly Adults in the United States

Abstract

Background: Allergic conditions may prevent some cancers by promoting immune surveillance. We examined associations of allergic rhinitis, asthma, and eczema with cancer risk among elderly Americans. Methods: We used Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (SEER)-Medicare linked data to perform a case-control study. Cases were individuals with first cancer diagnosed in SEER registries (1992-2013, ages 66-99; N ¼ 1,744,575). Cancer-free controls (N ¼ 100,000) were randomly selected from Medicare and matched on sex, age, and selection year. Allergic conditions were identified using Medicare claims, and logistic regression was used to estimate adjusted ORs (aOR) with significance gauged with a Bonferroni P cutoff (P < 0.00034). Results: Allergic rhinitis, asthma, and eczema were present in 8.40%, 3.45%, and 0.78% of controls, respectively. For allergic rhinitis, strong inverse associations (aORs, 0.66-0.79) were observed for cancers of the hypopharynx, esophagus (squamous cell), cervix, tonsil/oropharynx, and vagina/vulva. More modest but significant inverse associations were noted for cancers of the esophagus (adenocarcinoma), stomach, colon, rectosigmoid/rectum, liver, gallbladder, lung, uterus, bladder, and miscellaneous sites. Associations were stronger in analyses requiring a dispensed medication to confirm the presence of allergic rhinitis. Asthma was associated with reduced risk of liver cancer [aOR 0.82; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.75-0.91], whereas eczema was associated with elevated risk of T-cell lymphoma (aOR, 4.12; 95% CI, 3.43-4.95). Conclusions: Inverse associations with allergic rhinitis are present for multiple cancers and require etiologic investigation. Impact: Understanding of mechanisms by which allergic conditions reduce cancer risk may advance cancer prevention and treatment.

Associations between long-term conditions and upper gastrointestinal cancer incidence: A prospective population-based cohort of UK Biobank participants

“…There have been several attempts to explain possible mechanisms that may link long-term conditions to UGI cancer; however, the findings were not conclusive. [33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41] A meta-analysis by Xu and colleagues produced similar results to that reported in our study in relation to diabetes and oesophageal cancer: risk ratio of 1.28, 95% CI 1.12-1.47 and suggested hyperglycaemia and oxidative stress interactions may provide a mechanism linking diabetes and oesophageal cancer. 33 An increase in overall cancer risk has been reported among patients with multiple sclerosis and has been linked to immunomodulating or immunosuppressive therapies.…”

“…Similarly, D’Arcy and colleagues found an adjusted odds ratio of 1.29, 95% CI 1.08–1.54 for oesophageal cancer among participants with eczema. 40 - 41 …”

Assessing the protective role of allergic disease in gastrointestinal tract cancers using Mendelian randomization analysis

“…2 A reduced risk of gastrointestinal tract cancer among individuals with self-reported allergic conditions has been observed in several but not all observational studies. 3,4 However, whether the associations are causal remains unclear as observational studies are prone to residual confounding. Therefore, we conducted a Mendelian randomization study 5 to determine the causal role of genetic liability to allergic disease in esophageal, gastric, and colorectal cancers.…”

“…Moreover, their small size allows evading clearance from the lung, leading to long-term retention. 3 This suggests that nanoparticles are significant contributors of PAHs deposition in the lung and thus, may contribute to acute and chronic inflammation. However, few studies have evaluated the impact of chronic exposure to this pollutant on allergic asthma.…”

Drug Repositioning With an Anticancer Effect: Contributions to Reduced Cancer Incidence in Susceptible Individuals

“…Patients with allergies. The presence of allergies has also been correlated with a higher incidence of cancer, especially in older patients (12). Histamine receptor antagonists are generally used to control various forms of allergies (13).…”