Anaemia puts people at risk of cancer

Individuals with anaemia are at increased risk of developing cancer, as reported in a study from South Korea.

The study included 454,304 adults who underwent a standardized medical examination. These individuals were followed for 12 years for the occurrence of cancer.

A total of 41,947 individuals (9.2 percent) were found to be anaemic (defined as serum haemoglobin levels of <12 g/dL in women and <13 g/dL in men). The remaining 412,357 (90.8 percent) individuals had no anaemia.

In an analysis of 83,886 propensity-score matched cases and controls (41,943 per group) using Cox regression, anaemia conferred a 3-percent increase in the risk of incident cancer overall (hazard ratio [HR], 1.03, 95 percent confidence interval [CI], 1.01–1.05; p=0.023).

Specifically, individuals with anaemia were more likely to develop gastric cancer (HR, 1.29), oesophageal cancer (HR, 1.37), lung cancer (HR, 1.14), thyroid cancer (HR, 1.14), neoplasms of breast and genital organs (HR, 1.12), and lymphoma or leukaemia (HR, 1.63) compared with the control group.

More studies are needed to validate the present data and establish the associated mechanisms.

The association between anaemia and cancers has been reported in prior studies. The risk increase in gastric cancer, in particular, in anaemic individuals is thought to be partly due to a less acidic stomach (hypochlorhydria) as well as chronic inflammation. [Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol 2015;13:2282-2289.e4]