Cancer incidence in a population-based cohort of patients hospitalized with diabetes mellitus in Denmark

Cancer incidence in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: a population-based cohort study in Shanghai

BACKGROUND

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has been suggested to increase the risk of cancers. The aim of this study was to investigate the risk of common cancers in Chinese patients with T2DM.

METHODS

A population-based retrospective cohort study including 36,379 T2DM patients was conducted in Minhang District of Shanghai, China, during 2004 to 2010. All T2DM patients were enrolled from the standardized management system based on local electronic information system. Newly-diagnosed cancer cases were identified by record-linkage with the Shanghai Cancer Registry. Standardized incidence ratios (SIR) and 95% confidence interval (CI) were used to estimate the risk of cancers among T2DM patients.

RESULTS

Overall crude incidence rate (CIR) of cancers was 955.21 per 105 person-years in men and 829.57 per 105 person-years in women. Increased risk of cancer was found in both gender, with an SIR being 1.28 (95% CI = 1.17-1.38) in men and 1.44 (95% CI =1.32-1.55) in women. Increased risk of colon (SIR = 1.97; 95% CI = 1.49 to 2.46), rectum (1.72; 1.23 to 2.21), prostate (2.87; 2.19 to 3.56), and bladder cancers (1.98, 1.28 to 2.68) were observed in men and elevated risk of colon (1.67; 1.25 to 2.08), breast (1.66; 1.38 to 1.95), and corpus uteri cancers (2.87; 2.03 to 3.71) were observed in women.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results indicate that Chinese patients with T2DM may have an increased risk of some cancers, and the increase may vary by sub-sites of cancers.

Liver Cancer: Connections with Obesity, Fatty Liver, and Cirrhosis

The burden of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most common form of liver cancer, is steadily growing because obesity, type 2 diabetes, and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are replacing viral- and alcohol-related liver disease as major pathogenic promoters. The most worrisome aspects of these new risk factors are their large spread in the general population and their link with HCC arising in noncirrhotic livers. HCC may be the presenting feature of an asymptomatic nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), the progressive form of NAFLD. The HCC risk connected to metabolic factors has been underestimated so far, and a poorer surveillance has prevented an adequate treatment. Systemic and hepatic molecular mechanisms involved in obesity- and NAFLD-induced hepatocarcinogenesis as well as potential early markers of HCC are being extensively investigated. This review summarizes current evidence linking obesity, NAFLD and liver cancer, discusses its clinical impact and describes the main mechanisms underlying this complex relationship.

Insulin and IGFs in renal cancer risk and progression

Insulin and IGFs play a significant role in cancer development and progression, including renal cell carcinoma (RCC). RCC is the most frequent type of kidney cancer in adults and the tenth most common malignancy worldwide. Insulin is normally associated with metabolism control, whereas IGFs are defined as proliferation regulators. Today, there is convincing evidence of an association between obesity and the risk of RCC. Indicated risk factors together with type 2 diabetes are irreversibly connected with circulating insulin and IGF levels. The interplay between these molecules, their receptors, and IGF-binding proteins might be crucial for RCC cell biology and RCC progression. Given the potent activity IGF/IGF receptor 1 (IGF1R) inhibitors demonstrate against RCC in basic research, some type of combination therapy may prove to be beneficial clinically in the management of RCC. This review addresses not only molecular but also clinical associations between insulin and IGF1 signaling pathways and both RCC biology and clinical course. Revealing these interactions may improve our understanding of basic molecular oncology processes in RCC and improve treatment strategies.

Diabetes mellitus and gynecologic cancer: molecular mechanisms, epidemiological, clinical and prognostic perspectives

INTRODUCTION

Diabetes mellitus, the prevalence of which has increased dramatically worldwide, may put patients at a higher risk of cancer. The aim of our study is the clarification of the possible mechanisms linking diabetes mellitus and gynecological cancer and their epidemiological relationship.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This is a narrative review of the current literature, following a search on MEDLINE and the Cochrane Library, from their inception until January 2012. Articles investigating gynecologic cancer (endometrial, ovarian, and breast) incidence in diabetic patients were extracted.

RESULTS

The strong evidence for a positive association between diabetes mellitus and the risk for cancer indicates that energy intake in excess to energy expenditure, or the sequelae thereof, is involved in gynecological carcinogenesis. This risk may be further heightened by glucose which can directly promote the production of tumor cells by functioning as a source of energy. Insulin resistance accompanied by secondary hyperinsulinemia is hypothezised to have a mitogenic effect. Steroid hormones are in addition potent regulators of the balance between cellular differentiation, proliferation, and apoptosis. Inflammatory pathways may also be implicated, as a correlation seems to exist between diabetes mellitus and breast or endometrial carcinoma pathogenesis, although an analogous correlation with ovarian carcinoma is still under investigation. Antidiabetic agents have been correlated with elevated cancer risk, while metformin seems to lower the risk.

CONCLUSION

Diabetes mellitus is associated with an elevation in gynecologic cancer risk. Moreover, there are many studies exploring the prognosis of patients with diabetes and gynecological cancer, the outcome and the overall survival in well-regulated patients.

Risk of Malignant Neoplasms of Kidney and Bladder in a Cohort Study of the Diabetic Population in Taiwan With Age, Sex, and Geographic Area Stratifications

Diabetes has been reported to increase the risk of malignant neoplasms of kidney and bladder, but the studies' results are still inconclusive. Age, sex, and geographical area-specific incidence and relative risks of above neoplasms are also scarce in the literature. We prospectively investigated the age, sex, geographical area-specific incidence and relative risks of kidney and bladder neoplasms in diabetic population of Taiwan. Diabetic patients (n = 615,532) and age- and sex-matched controls (n = 614,871) were linked to inpatient claims (2000-2008) to identify the admissions for malignant neoplasm of kidney (International Classification of Diagnosis, 9th version, Clinical Modification: 189) and bladder (International Classification of Diagnosis, 9th version, Clinical Modification: 188). The person-year approach with Poisson assumption was used to evaluate the incidence density. We also estimated the age, sex, and geographical area-specific relative risks of above malignancy in relation to diabetes with Cox proportional hazard regression model. The overall incidence density of malignant neoplasm of kidney for diabetic men and women were 3.87 and 4.28 per 10,000 patient-years, respectively; the corresponding figures for malignant neoplasm of bladder were 5.73 and 3.25 per 10,000 patient-years. Compared with the controls, diabetic men were at significantly increased hazards of kidney (covariate adjusted hazard ratio [aHR]: 1.31, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.18-1.46) and bladder aHR: 1.13, 95% CI 1.04-1.23). Diabetic women, on the contrary, only experienced significantly elevated hazard of kidney neoplasm (aHR: 1.14, 95% CI 1.04-1.26). Diabetic men aged >65 years showed the most significantly increased hazard of developing neoplasm of kidney (aHR: 1.40) and bladder (aHR: 1.13). The most significantly increased hazard of kidney neoplasm was noted for women diabetic patients aged >65 years. There was also a significant interactive effect of geographic area with diabetes on the incidence of kidney and bladder neoplasms in both sexes. Diabetic men >45 years and diabetic women >65 years were found to have significantly increased hazard of malignant neoplasm of kidney, but only diabetic men >65 years were at significantly increased hazard of bladder neoplasm. The significant geographic variations in incidence and relative hazard of kidney and bladder neoplasms warrant further investigations of the underlying reasons.

Diabetes associated with pancreatic diseases

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

A relevant number of patients with pancreatic disorders suffer from secondary diabetes. Recent data have shed light on the link between pancreatic damage and subsequent impairments in glucose homeostasis. Furthermore, epidemiological studies provided insights into the relationship between diabetes and the risk of pancreatic carcinoma or pancreatitis. Pancreaticogenic diabetes requires a tailored therapeutic approach taking into account the individual properties of the available glucose-lowering drugs.

RECENT FINDINGS

We review the available literature concerning diabetes in patients with acute or chronic pancreatitis or pancreatic carcinoma. The relationship between the pancreatic damage and alterations in insulin and glucose homeostasis is summarized as well as the effect of diabetes mellitus on the risk of pancreatic cancer and pancreatitis. Caveats in the treatment of pancreaticogenic diabetes with currently available drugs are being discussed.

SUMMARY

Patients with pancreatic diseases should be screened for diabetes by means of an oral glucose tolerance test. There is a close inverse relationship between pancreatic β-cell loss and postchallenge hyperglycemia. The risk of hypoglycemia may be increased in patients with pancreaticogenic diabetes. Newly diagnosed diabetes may be a harbinger of pancreatic cancer. There is increasing evidence suggesting an increased risk for (pancreatic) cancer and pancreatitis in patients with diabetes mellitus. Further studies on the ideal glucose-lowering treatment of patients with pancreaticogenic diabetes will be required.

The Prognostic Impact of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus on Early Cervical Cancer in Asia

BACKGROUND

Many studies have shown that type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) increases the risk for several types of cancer but not cervical cancer (CC). Although DM and insulin-like growth factor 1 have preclinical and clinical implications for CC, less is known about the prognostic impact of DM on patients with early stage CC.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

We used the nationwide Taiwan Cancer Registry database to collect the characteristics of stage I-IIA cervical cancer patients diagnosed between 2004 and 2008. DM and other comorbidities were retrieved from the National Health Insurance database. Cervical cancer-specific survival (CSS) and overall survival (OS) times of patients according to DM status were estimated using the Kaplan-Meier method. We used a Cox proportional hazards model to calculate adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) for the effects of DM and other risk factors on mortality.

RESULTS

A total of 2,946 patients had primary stage I-IIA CC and received curative treatments, and 284 (9.6%) had DM. The 5-year CSS and OS rates for patients with DM were significantly lower than those without DM (CSS: 85.4% vs. 91.5%; OS: 73.9% vs. 87.9%). After adjusting for clinicopathologic variables and comorbidities, DM remained an independent unfavorable prognostic factor for CSS (adjusted HR: 1.46) and OS (adjusted HR: 1.55).

CONCLUSION

In Asian patients with early cervical cancer, DM is an independent unfavorable prognostic factor influencing both OS and CSS, even after curative treatments.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) increases the incidence of several types of cancer but not cervical cancer (CC); however, less is known about the impact of DM on patients who already have CC. This study suggests that DM may increase the risk of cancer recurrence and death for early stage CC patients, even after curative treatments. Incorporating DM control should be considered part of the continuum of care for early stage CC patients, and close surveillance during routine follow-up in this population is recommended.

A Population-Based Cohort Study of All-Cause and Site-Specific Cancer Incidence Among Patients With Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus in Taiwan

BACKGROUND

The relationship between type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and cancer incidence remains unclear. We sought to assess the all-cause and site-specific cancer incidence in patients with T1DM.

METHODS

A retrospective cohort study design was employed, in which 14 619 patients with T1DM were retrieved from Taiwan's National Health Insurance medical claims between 2000 and 2007. The study subjects were followed to the end of 2008, and cancer incidence was assessed. We calculated age-, sex-, and calendar year-standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) of all-cause cancer incidence and site-specific neoplasm incidence, with reference to the general population.

RESULTS

Seven hundred and sixty patients were identified for all-cause cancer over 86,610 person-years, representing an incidence rate of 87.75 cases per 10,000 person-years. The incidence rate was higher in males than in female patients (109.86 vs 69.75 cases per 10,000 person-years). T1DM was associated with a significantly increased SIR of all-cause cancer (1.13; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.05-1.22). The sex-specific SIR was significantly elevated in female patients (1.19; 95% CI, 1.07-1.33), but the SIR for male patients was insignificantly elevated (1.09; 95% CI, 0.99-1.20). Pancreatic cancer showed the greatest increase in SIR among both male and female patients with T1DM. Male patients experienced significantly increased SIRs for kidney, rectum, liver, and colon neoplasm, and significantly increased SIRs were noted for ovarian, bladder, and colon cancer in female patients.

CONCLUSIONS

T1DM was associated with a 13% increase in risk of all-cause cancer incidence. Patients with T1DM should be advised to undergo cancer screening for certain types of cancer.

Pancreatic cancer and diabetes: A two-way relationship in the perspective of diabetologist

Diabetes is a risk factor for pancreatic cancer as roughly half of all patients with pancreatic cancer are found to have diabetes at time of diagnosis. Moreover, an around 2-fold risk of pancreatic malignancy in diabetic patients has even be recently resulted from two meta-analysis. Actually, there is a bidirectional association between the two entities that implies a complex and reverse causality. In fact, while the risk for pancreatic cancer is modestly but significantly increased in patients with long-standing diabetes, recent-onset diabetes appears to be very frequently associated with pancreatic malignancy. Therefore, diabetes could serve as an excellent clue for early detection of pancreatic cancer. Moreover, recent epidemiological findings support the hypothesis that chronic exposure to hyperglycemia, higher insulin concentrations, and insulin resistance may be responsible for the enhanced risk of developing pancreatic cancer. Epidemiological data suggest that the type of anti-diabetic therapy may affect the risk of developing pancreatic cancer. In particular, metformin has been shown to reduce the risk of pancreatic cancer, as well as several other malignancies. On the other hand, some hypoglycemic agents could determine an increase of pancreatic cancer risk. These last findings were not confirmed. Finally, pancreatic cancer necessitates of a multidisciplinary management, primarily including surgeons and oncologists. In this context, the diabetologist plays an important role, given that his actions may influence the prevention and early diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, the perioperative complications associated to glycemic derangement, as well as the proper treatment of postpancreactomy diabetes.

Diabetes, use of antidiabetic drugs, and the risk of glioma

BACKGROUND

Prior epidemiologic studies suggest inverse relations between diabetes and glioma risk, but the underlying mechanisms, including use of antidiabetic drugs, are unknown.

METHODS

We therefore performed a matched case-control analysis using the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD). We identified incident glioma cases diagnosed between 1995 and 2012 and matched each case with 10 controls on age, gender, calendar time, general practice, and years of active history in the CPRD. We performed conditional logistic regression to estimate odds ratios (ORs) with 95% CIs, adjusted for body mass index and smoking.

RESULTS

We identified 2005 cases and 20 050 controls. Diabetes was associated with decreased risk of glioma (OR = 0.74; 95% CI = 0.60-0.93), particularly glioblastoma (OR = 0.69; 95% CI = 0.51-0.94). Glioblastoma risk reduction was markedly pronounced among diabetic men (OR = 0.60; 95% CI = 0.40-0.90), most apparently for those with diabetes of long-term duration (OR for >5 vs 0 y = 0.46; 95% CI = 0.26-0.82) or poor glycemic control (OR for HbA1c ≥ 8 vs <6.5% = 0.20; 95% CI = 0.06-0.70). In contrast, the effect of diabetes on glioblastoma risk was absent among women (OR = 0.85; 95% CI = 0.53-1.36). No significant associations with glioma were found for use of metformin (OR for ≥ 30 vs 0 prescriptions = 0.72; 95% CI = 0.38-1.39), sulfonylureas (OR = 0.71; 95% CI = 0.39-1.30), or insulin (OR = 0.79; 95% CI = 0.37-1.69).

CONCLUSIONS

Antidiabetic treatment appears to be unrelated to glioma, but long-term diabetes duration and increased HbA1c both show decreased glioma risk. Stronger findings in men than women suggest low androgen levels concurrent with diabetes as a biologic mechanism.

Risk of bladder cancer in patients with diabetes: a retrospective cohort study

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to examine the association between diabetes, and both urinary bladder cancer (UBC) risk and mortality.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective cohort study using data from the UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD) linked to the Office of National Statistics (ONS). Patients diagnosed with diabetes mellitus type 1 or 2, or using antidiabetic drugs (ADDs), were compared to matched non-diabetic controls. Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate the risk and mortality of UBC. We adjusted for age, sex, smoking status and body mass index.

RESULTS

The cohort included 329,168 patients using ADD, and 307,315 controls with 1295 and 1071 patients, respectively, diagnosed as having UBC during follow-up. The adjusted HRs of UBC were 0.77 (95% CI 0.57 to 1.05) and 1.04 (95% CI 0.96 to 1.14) for type 1 and 2 diabetes, respectively. These results were similar if we restricted our analysis to an inception cohort. We noticed a small increased risk during the first year after diagnosis (HR=1.26 (95% CI 1.05 to 1.52)), which could be explained by detection bias. There was no influence of the severity of diabetes as measured by the glycated haemoglobin. Mortality of UBC was not increased for patients with either type 1 (HR=0.95 (95% CI 0.39 to 2.34)) or type 2 diabetes (HR=1.16 (95% CI 0.91 to 1.46)).

CONCLUSIONS

Neither the risk of UBC nor the mortality from UBC was increased in patients with type 1 and patients with type 2 diabetes in the CPRD data.

The Global Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Epidemic: What a Radiologist Needs to Know

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) represents a spectrum of disorders from a benign steatosis to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). Metabolic syndrome, mainly obesity, plays an important role, both as an independent risk factor and in the pathogenesis of NAFLD. With the progressive epidemics of obesity and diabetes mellitus, the prevalence of NAFLD and its associated complications is expected to increase dramatically. Therapeutic strategies for treating NAFLD and metabolic syndrome, particularly obesity, are continuously being refined. Their goal is the prevention of NAFLD by the management of risk factors, prevention of progression of the disease, as well as management of complications, ultimately preventing morbidity and mortality. Optimal management of NAFLD and metabolic syndrome requires a multidisciplinary collaboration between the government as well as the health system including the nutritionist, primary care physician, radiologist, hepatologist, oncologist, and transplant surgeon. An awareness of the clinical presentation, risk factors, pathogenesis, diagnosis, and management is of paramount importance to a radiologist, both from the clinical perspective as well as from the imaging standpoint. With expertise in imaging modalities as well as minimally invasive percutaneous endovascular therapies, radiologists play an essential role in the comprehensive management, which is highlighted in this article, with cases from our practice. We also briefly discuss transarterial embolization of the left gastric artery (LGA), a novel method that promises to have an enormous potential in the minimally invasive management of obesity, with details of a case from our practice.

Insulin and other antidiabetic drugs and hepatocellular carcinoma risk: a nested case-control study based on Italian healthcare utilization databases

PURPOSE

Insulin and other antidiabetic drugs may modulate hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) risk in diabetics.

METHODS

We have analyzed the role of various antidiabetic drugs on HCC in a nested case-control study using the healthcare utilization databases of the Lombardy Region in Italy. This included 190 diabetic subjects with a hospital discharge reporting a diagnosis of malignant HCC and 3772 diabetic control subjects matched to each case on sex, age, date at cohort entry, and duration of follow-up.

RESULTS

Increased risks of HCC were found for use of insulin (odds ratio [OR] = 3.73, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.52-5.51), sulfonylureas (OR = 1.39, 95%CI 0.98-1.99), and repaglinide (OR = 2.12, 95%CI 1.38-3.26), while a reduced risk was found for use of metformin (OR = 0.57, 95%CI 0.41-0.79). The risk of HCC increased with increasing duration of insulin use (OR = 2.52 for <1 year, 5.41 for 1-2 years, and 6.01 for ≥2 years; p for trend < 0.001), while no clear pattern with duration was observed for sulfonylureas, repaglinide, and metformin.

CONCLUSION

Our study supports the evidence that patients with diabetes using metformin, and possibly other antidiabetic drugs that increase insulin sensibility, have a reduced risk of HCC, while those using insulin or drugs that increase circulating insulin, such as insulin secretagogues, have an increased risk. Whether these associations are causal, or influenced by different severity of diabetes and/or possible residual bias or misclassification, is still open to discussion.

Nonalcoholic Fatty liver disease, diabetes, obesity, and hepatocellular carcinoma

Diabetes and obesity are associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and an increased incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). NAFLD is the commonest cause of chronic liver disease. HCC can develop in NAFLD patients even without cirrhosis, suggesting an association between the metabolic process and HCC and raising a concern that many cancers could be missed given high NAFLD prevalence and screening limitations. The increasing prevalence of these conditions and lack of effective treatments necessitate a better understanding of their connection. This article defines the known interrelationships and common pathways between NAFLD, diabetes, obesity and HCC and possible chemoprevention strategies.

Microarray profile of human kidney from diabetes, renal cell carcinoma and renal cell carcinoma with diabetes

Recent study from our laboratory showed that patients with diabetes are at a higher risk of developing kidney cancer. In the current study, we have screened whole human DNA genome from healthy control, patients with diabetes or renal cell carcinoma (RCC) or RCC+diabetes. We found that 883 genes gain/163 genes loss of copy number in RCC+diabetes group, 669 genes gain/307 genes loss in RCC group and 458 genes gain/38 genes loss of copy number in diabetes group, after removing gain/loss genes obtained from healthy control group. Data analyzed for functional annotation enrichment pathways showed that control group had the highest number (280) of enriched pathways, 191 in diabetes+RCC group, 148 in RCC group, and 81 in diabetes group. The overlap GO pathways between RCC+diabetes and RCC groups showed that nine were enriched, between RCC+diabetes and diabetes groups was four and between diabetes and RCC groups was eight GO pathways. Overall, we observed majority of DNA alterations in patients from RCC+diabetes group. Interestingly, insulin receptor (INSR) is highly expressed and had gains in copy number in RCC+diabetes and diabetes groups. The changes in INSR copy number may use as a biomarker for predicting RCC development in diabetic patients.

The association between type 2 diabetes mellitus and women cancer: the epidemiological evidences and putative mechanisms

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), a chronic disease increasing rapidly worldwide, is well established as an important risk factor for various types of cancer. Although many factors impact the development of T2DM and cancer including sex, age, ethnicity, obesity, diet, physical activity levels, and environmental exposure, many epidemiological and experimental studies are gradually contributing to knowledge regarding the interrelationship between DM and cancer. The insulin resistance, hyperinsulinemia, and chronic inflammation associated with diabetes mellitus are all associated strongly with cancer. The changes in bioavailable ovarian steroid hormone that occur in diabetes mellitus (the increasing levels of estrogen and androgen and the decreasing level of progesterone) are also considered potentially carcinogenic conditions for the breast, endometrium, and ovaries in women. In addition, the interaction among insulin, insulin-like growth factors (IGFs), and ovarian steroid hormones, such as estrogen and progesterone, could act synergistically during cancer development. Here, we review the cancer-related mechanisms in T2DM, the epidemiological evidence linking T2DM and cancers in women, and the role of antidiabetic medication in these cancers.

Role of breast cancer inhibitors on diabetes mellitus- an in silico approach

Background

Breast cancer and diabetes mellitus type-2 are two of the major diseases, which cause death to the women worldwide. Around 16% of the breast cancer patients also suffer from diabetes mellitus. It has been noted that the risk of occurrence of the breast cancer is more in patients suffering from diabetes mellitus.

Methods

Owing to this, the present article deals with an objective of using the breast cancer inhibitors for the diabetes drug target– 1ADS. Ten breast cancer inhibitors were drawn using Marvin Sketch. The docking was performed using Molegro software (Molegro Virtual Docker, MVD).

Results

The docking wizard generated 50 poses with the highest Mol Dock score −131.649.

Conclusion

This investigation successfully evaluated the effect of breast cancer inhibitors on diabetes mellitus, providing a new dimension in endocrine research.

Dietary effects on liver tumor burden in mice treated with the hepatocellular carcinogen diethylnitrosamine

BACKGROUND & AIMS

Mice exposed to the hepatocellular carcinogen diethylnitrosamine at 2 weeks of age have a high risk of developing primary liver tumors later in life. Previous studies have demonstrated that diethylnitrosamine-treated mice have increased tumor burden when fed an obesigenic "Western" diet rich in lard fat and sugar. However, the role of dietary fats vs. sugars in the promotion of liver cancer is poorly understood. The aim of this study was to determine how altering dietary fats vs. sugars affects tumor burden in the diethylnitrosamine model.

METHODS

C57BL/6N mice were treated with diethylnitrosamine at 2 weeks of age and, from 6 to 32 weeks of age, fed one of five diets that differed in fat and sugar content, including normal chow, ketogenic, and Western diets.

RESULTS

Mice fed sugar-rich diets had the greatest tumor burden irrespective of dietary fat content. In contrast, mice fed a high-fat low-sugar diet had the least tumor burden despite obesity and glucose intolerance. When evaluated as independent variables, tumor burden was positively correlated with hepatic fat accumulation, postprandial insulin, and liver IL-6, and inversely correlated with serum adiponectin. In contrast, tumor burden did not correlate with adiposity, fasting insulin, or glucose intolerance. Furthermore, mice fed high sugar diets had lower liver expression of p21 and cleaved caspase-3 compared to mice fed low sugar diets.

CONCLUSIONS

These data indicate that dietary sugar intake contributes to liver tumor burden independent of excess adiposity or insulin resistance in mice treated with diethylnitrosamine.

Diabetes Mellitus Predicts Occurrence of Cirrhosis and Hepatocellular Cancer in Alcoholic Liver and Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Diseases

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Alcohol abuse and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are common causes of liver disease. Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a common comorbidity among NAFLD patients. We performed this study with the specific aim to examine the impact of DM on progression of alcoholic liver disease (ALD) liver and NAFLD.

METHODS

Medical charts of 480 patients with ALD or NAFLD (2004-2011) managed at a tertiary center were retrospectively reviewed. NAFLD was diagnosed based on exclusion of other causes of liver disease and alcohol use of <10 g/d. ALD was diagnosed based on alcohol use of >40 g/d in women or >60 g/d in men for >5 years.

RESULTS

Of 480 patients (307 NAFLD), 200 diabetics differed from nondiabetics for: age (52±11 vs. 49±11 years; p=0.004); male gender (48% vs. 57%; p=0.03); metabolic syndrome (49% vs. 30%; p=0.0002); NAFLD (80% vs. 56%; p<0.0001); cirrhosis (70% vs. 59%; p=0.005); and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC; 8% vs. 3%; p=0.009). Over a 3 year median follow-up period, diabetics relative to nondiabetics had a higher probability to develop cirrhosis (60% vs. 41%; p=0.022) and HCC (27% vs. 10%; p=0.045). There was a trend for increased development of hepatic encephalopathy in diabetics compared to nondiabetics (55% vs. 39%; p=0.053), and there was no difference between the two groups in survival or other liver disease complications.

CONCLUSIONS

DM increased risk for cirrhosis and HCC among patients with ALD and NAFLD. Prospective studies with longer follow-up periods are needed to examine the impact of DM on survival and the role of aggressive HCC screening in diabetic cirrhotics.

Hyperactivation of Akt/mTOR and deficiency in tuberin increased the oxidative DNA damage in kidney cancer patients with diabetes

Recent study from our laboratory showed that patients with diabetes are at a higher risk of developing kidney cancer. In the current study, we have explored one of the mechanisms by which diabetes accelerates tumorigenesis in the kidney. Kidney cancer tissue from patients with diabetes showed a higher activity of Akt and decreased in total protein of tuberin compared to kidney cancer patient without diabetes or diabetes alone. In addition, a significant increase in phospho-Akt/tuberin expression was associated with an increase in Ki67 expression and activation of mTOR in kidney tumor with or without diabetes compared to diabetes alone. In addition, decrease in tuberin expression resulted in a significant decrease in protein expression of OGG1 and increased in oxidative DNA damage, 8-oxodG in kidney tissues from patients with cancer or cancer+diabetes. Importantly, these data showed that the majority of the staining of Akt/tuberin/p70S6K phosphorylation was more prominently in the tubular cells. In addition, accumulation of oxidative DNA damage is localized only in the nucleus of tubular cells within the cortex region. These data suggest that Akt/tuberin/mTOR pathway plays an important role in the regulation DNA damage and repair pathways that may predispose diabetic kidneys to pathogenesis of renal cell carcinoma.

Type 2 diabetes mellitus and risk of oral cancer and precancerous lesions: a meta-analysis of observational studies

OBJECTIVE

Associations between type 2 diabetes mellitus (type 2 DM) and risk of oral cancer and precancerous lesions have been reported with controversial findings. We performed a meta-analysis to explore these associations.

METHODS

We identified studies by a literature search of MEDLINE and EMBASE through May 31, 2014, and by searching the reference lists of pertinent articles. Summary relative risk (SRR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was calculated with a random-effects model. Between- study heterogeneity was assessed using the Cochran's Q and I(2) statistics.

RESULTS

A total of 13 studies (4 case-control and 9 cohort studies) on the association between type 2 DM and oral cancer were included. Overall analysis found that compared with non-diabetic individuals, individuals with type 2 DM had a significantly elevated incidence of oral cancer (SRR=1.15, 95% CI: 1.02-1.29; Pheterogeneity=0.277, I(2)=15.4%; 10 studies). Subgroup analyses found that duration of follow-up (⩾11years) significantly altered this positive association. Type 2 DM was associated with increased oral cancer mortality (SRR=1.41, 95% CI: 1.16-1.72; 4 studies). Meta-analysis of the four case-control studies showed a positive association between type 2 DM and risk of oral precancerous lesions (SRR=1.85, 95%CI: 1.23-2.80; Pheterogeneity=0.038, I(2)=57.5%). No significant public bias was found across these studies.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings of this meta-analysis indicate that compared with non-diabetic individuals, individuals with type 2 DM have an elevated risk of oral cancer and precancerous lesions development.

Cigarette smoking and other risk factors for kidney cancer death in a Japanese population: Japan Collaborative Cohort Study for evaluation of cancer risk (JACC study)

BACKGROUND

Cigarette smoking is the largest single recognized cause of human cancers. In Western countries, many epidemiologists have reported risk factors for kidney cancer including smoking. However, little is known about the Japanese population.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We evaluated the association of smoking with the risk of kidney cancer death in the Japan Collaborative Cohort (JACC) Study. Participants included 46,395 males and 64,190 females. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to determine age-and-sex adjusted relative risks.

RESULTS

A total of 62 males and 26 females died from kidney cancer during the follow-up of 707,136 and 1,025,703 person-years, respectively. Heavy smokers (Brinkman index >1200), fondness of fatty foods, hypertension, diabetes mellitus (DM), and obesity were suggested to increase the risk of renal cell carcinoma while walking was suggested to decrease the risk. Even after controlling for age, sex, alcohol drinking and DM, heavy smoking significantly increased the risk.

CONCLUSIONS

The present study suggests that six factors including smoking may increase and/or reduce the risk of kidney cancer in the Japanese population. Because of the small number of outcomes, however, we did not evaluate these factors after adjusting for all possible confounding factors. Further studies may be needed to confirm the findings in this study.

Diabetes mellitus and the risk of prostate cancer: an update and cumulative meta-analysis

INTRODUCTION

To provide further insight into the association between type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and the pathophysiology of prostate cancer, we conducted an updated, detailed meta-analysis of 56 published case-control and cohort studies.

METHODS

MEDLINE and EMBASE were used to identify the literature published in April 2012 related to both diabetes mellitus and prostate cancer. A sensitivity analysis was performed, and potential confounding effects were investigated using a stratified meta-analysis. A cumulative meta-analysis was also carried out to evaluate the cumulative effect estimate over time.

RESULTS

A total of 24 case-control and 32 cohort studies with information on a total of ~8,000,000 subjects and ~140,000 individuals with prostatic cancer showed published estimates of the association between diabetes and prostate cancer malignancy. The pooled effect estimate revealed a relative risk (RR) of 0.88 (95% CI, 0.82-0.93). Interestingly, there was an increased trend for Asians (RR = 1.72, n = 7) but not Americans (RR = 0.82, n = 28) and Europeans (RR = 0.86, n = 21) regarding the association between diabetes mellitus and prostate cancer. The sensitivity analysis, excluding any one study, did not significantly change the pooled RR. The range for the pooled RR when one study was omitted was 0.84-0.89.

DISCUSSION

The findings of our meta-analysis provide strong evidence of an inverse association between diabetes and prostate cancer.

CONCLUSIONS

Further research should focus on limitations in the current literature and re-assess the relationship between diabetes and prostate cancer by analyzing the two different diabetes mellitus types separately.

Metabolic syndrome is associated with increased breast cancer risk: a systematic review with meta-analysis

Background. Although individual metabolic risk factors are reported to be associated with breast cancer risk, controversy surrounds risk of breast cancer from metabolic syndrome (MS). We report the first systematic review and meta-analysis of the association between MS and breast cancer risk in all adult females. Methods. Studies were retrieved by searching four electronic reference databases [PubMed, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Web of Science, and ProQuest through June 30, 2012] and cross-referencing retrieved articles. Eligible for inclusion were longitudinal studies reporting associations between MS and breast cancer risk among females aged 18 years and older. Relative risks and 95% confidence intervals were calculated for each study and pooled using random-effects models. Publication bias was assessed quantitatively (Trim and Fill) and qualitatively (funnel plots). Heterogeneity was examined using Q and I² statistics. Results. Representing nine independent cohorts and 97,277 adult females, eight studies met the inclusion criteria. A modest, positive association was observed between MS and breast cancer risk (RR: 1.47, 95% CI, 1.15–1.87; z = 3.13; p = 0.002; Q = 26.28, p = 0.001; I² = 69.55%). No publication bias was observed. Conclusions. MS is associated with increased breast cancer risk in adult women.

Pre-existing type 2 diabetes mellitus is an independent risk factor for mortality and progression in patients with renal cell carcinoma

Malignancies are one of the main causes of mortality in diabetic patients; however, to date, very limited data have been reported on the specific influence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) on the survival of patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC). In the present long-term retrospective study, we investigated whether T2DM may influence the overall survival (OS), cancer-specific survival (CSS), and progression-free survival (PFS) in patients with surgically treated RCC. Medical records of 924 patients treated by radical or partial nephrectomy for sporadic, unilateral RCC were reviewed. Patients with type-1 DM and with T2 DM receiving insulin treatment were excluded. Survival estimates were calculated according to the Kaplan-Meier method and compared with the log-rank test. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed using the Cox regression model.Of the 924 RCC patients, 152 (16.5%) had T2DM. Mean follow-up was 68.5 months. Mean OS was 41.3 and 96.3 months in T2DM and non-T2DM patients, respectively (P < 0.0001).The estimated CSS rates at 1, 3, and 5 years in T2DM versus non-T2DM patients were 63.4% versus 76.7%, 30.4% versus 56.6%, and 16.3% versus 48.6%, respectively (P = 0.001). Mean PFS was significantly lower (31.5 vs 96.3 months; P < 0.0001) in the T2DM group. At multivariate analysis, T2DM was an independent adverse prognostic factor for OS (hazard ratio [HR]  = 3.44; 95% confidence interval [CI]:2.40-4.92), CSS (HR = 6.39; 95% CI: 3.78-10.79), and PFS (HR = 4.71; 95% CI: 3.11-7.15). In conclusion, our findings suggest that patients with RCC and pre-existing T2DM have a shorter OS, increased risk of recurrence, and higher risk for kidney cancer mortality than those without diabetes.

Metabolic components and recurrence in early-stage cervical cancer

Epidemiological evidence suggests that the metabolic syndrome (MetS) is associated with increased risk of cervical cancer. However, research on the impact of MetS on prognosis in cervical cancer is lacking. This study investigated the association between MetS and recurrence-free survival (RFS) in patients with early-stage cervical cancer. This is a retrospective study of patients diagnosed with the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage I-II cervical cancer in three tertiary hospitals during 2006-2009. Cox proportional hazards model was used to estimate the association between MetS or MetS components and RFS. We were able to evaluate MetS status in 84 patients out of 127. Forty patients had MetS. RFS was not significantly different according to MetS status; however, there was no further event of recurrence in non-MetS group after 2 years from primary surgical treatment. Hypertriglyceridemia (HR 3.67, 95% CI 1.18-11.43) and impaired fasting glucose (HR 4.30, 95% CI 1.23-15.03) were independent risk factors for shorter RFS, after adjustment for age, lymph node involvement, tumor involvement of resection margin, parametrial invasion, FIGO stage at diagnosis, and adjuvant treatment. Hypertriglyceridemia and impaired fasting glucose were associated with higher risk of recurrence in patients with early-stage cervical cancer. Prospective validation in large populations and further studies on the impact of MetS treatment in patients with cervical cancer are warranted.

Hepatitis C virus infection and type 1 and type 2 diabetes mellitus

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and diabetes mellitus are two major public health problems that cause devastating health and financial burdens worldwide. Diabetes can be classified into two major types: type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) and T2DM. T2DM is a common endocrine disorder that encompasses multifactorial mechanisms, and T1DM is an immunologically mediated disease. Many epidemiological studies have shown an association between T2DM and chronic hepatitis C (CHC) infection. The processes through which CHC is associated with T2DM seem to involve direct viral effects, insulin resistance, proinflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and other immune-mediated mechanisms. Few data have been reported on the association of CHC and T1DM and reports on the potential association between T1DM and acute HCV infection are even rarer. A small number of studies indicate that interferon-α therapy can stimulate pancreatic autoimmunity and in certain cases lead to the development of T1DM. Diabetes and CHC have important interactions. Diabetic CHC patients have an increased risk of developing cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma compared with non-diabetic CHC subjects. However, clinical trials on HCV-positive patients have reported improvements in glucose metabolism after antiviral treatment. Further studies are needed to improve prevention policies and to foster adequate and cost-effective programmes for the surveillance and treatment of diabetic CHC patients.

The epidemiology of diabetes and cancer

The literature on cancer occurrence in persons with diabetes has almost invariably been concerned with relative measures. In this paper, we briefly review this, but the aim is to quantify the absolute occurrence of diabetes and cancer in the population in order to give a fuller picture, which also includes the competing mortality risk. Overall, we find that some 35 % of the population will have a diagnosis of diabetes in their lifetime, 44 % a diagnosis of cancer, and about 15 % will have both diagnoses. The impact of differing mortality between persons with and without diabetes is illustrated by the fact that a person without diabetes at age 50 has a smaller lifetime risk of cancer than a person aged 50 with diabetes. Thus, the differences in cancer occurrence between persons with and without diabetes are of quantitatively smaller importance than the differences in mortality.

Diabetes mellitus: influences on cancer risk

Diabetes mellitus and cancer are common conditions, and their co-diagnosis in the same individual is not infrequent. The relative risks associated with type 2 diabetes are greater than twofold for hepatic, pancreatic, and endometrial cancers. The relative risk is somewhat lower, at 1.2-1.5-fold for colorectal, breast, and bladder cancers. In comparison, the relative risk of lung cancer is less than 1. The evidence for other malignancies (e.g. kidney, non-Hodgkin lymphoma) is inconclusive, whereas prostatic cancer occurs less frequently in male patients with diabetes. The potential biologic links between the two diseases are incompletely understood. Evidence from observational studies suggests that some medications used to treat hyperglycemia are associated with either increased or reduced risk of cancer. Whereas anti-diabetic drugs have a minor influence on cancer risk, drugs used to treat cancer may either cause diabetes or worsen pre-existing diabetes. If hyperinsulinemia acts as a critical link between the observed increased cancer risk and type 2 diabetes, one would predict that patients with type 1 diabetes would have a different cancer risk pattern than patients with type 2 diabetes because the former patients are exposed to lower levels of exogenous administered insulin. Obtained results showed that patients with type 1 diabetes had elevated risks of cancers of the stomach, cervix, and endometrium. Type 1 diabetes is associated with a modest excess cancer risk overall and risks of specific cancers that differ from those associated with type 2 diabetes.

Risk of cervical cancer in women with autoimmune diseases, in relation with their use of immunosuppressants and screening: population-based cohort study

Severely immunosuppressed individuals have a strongly increased risk of cervical cancer. In patients with autoimmune diseases (AID), who have defects in their immune system and receive immunosuppressants, the risk of cervical cancer is less clear. We conducted a cohort study, using Danish nationwide population-based registers including information on AID diagnoses, immunosuppressant intake, cervical screening participation, and cervical cancer incidence. Standardized incidence ratios (SIR) were computed to compare the risk of cervical cancer in AID patients to that of the general population. Hazard ratios (HR) from time-dependent Cox models stratified by AID were used to explore the effect of the most frequently used immunosuppressants, taking into account potential dose-response relationships and lag times between drug exposure and cervical cancer development. Cervical screening coverage of patients with AIDs was compared to the general population. Among 341,758 patients with AIDs, the risk of cervical cancer was not higher than in the general population (SIR = 1.0, 95% CI: 0.9-1.1, based on 720 cases). The intake of immunosuppressants was generally not associated with the risk, apart from azathioprine. The crude HR comparing the period of exposure versus non-exposure to azathioprine was 1.4 (95% CI: 0.9-2.1). Furthermore, the risk was substantially increased in patients who received a high cumulative dose of azathioprine (HR = 2.2, 95% CI = 1.2-3.9), and appeared to be highest when considering that the immunosuppressant exposure would take 5 years to trigger cervical cancer. Patients with AIDs had similarly high screening rates as the general population. Although most patients with AIDs do not have an increased risk of cervical cancer, those taking substantial amounts of azathioprine might need more stringent cervical screening measures.

CARING (CAncer Risk and INsulin analoGues): the association of diabetes mellitus and cancer risk with focus on possible determinants - a systematic review and a meta-analysis

Background:

Patients suffering from diabetes mellitus (DM) may experience an increased risk of cancer; however, it is not certain whether this effect is due to diabetes per se.

Objective:

To examine the association between DM and cancers by a systematic review and meta-analysis according to the PRISMA guidelines.

Data Sources:

The systematic literature search includes Medline at PubMed, Embase, Cinahl, Bibliotek.dk, Cochrane library, Web of Science and SveMed+ with the search terms: “Diabetes mellitus”, “Neoplasms”, and “Risk of cancer”.

Study Eligibility Criteria:

The included studies compared the risk of cancer in diabetic patients versus non-diabetic patients. All types of observational study designs were included.

Results:

Diabetes patients were at a substantially increased risk of liver (RR=2.1), and pancreas (RR=2.2) cancer. Modestly elevated significant risks were also found for ovary (RR=1.2), breast (RR=1.1), cervix (RR=1.3), endometrial (RR=1.4), several digestive tract (RR=1.1-1.5), kidney (RR=1.4), and bladder cancer (RR=1.1). The findings were similar for men and women, and unrelated to study design. Meta-regression analyses showed limited effect modification of body mass index, and possible effect modification of age, gender, with some influence of study characteristics (population source, cancer- and diabetes ascertainment).

Limitations:

Publication bias seemed to be present. Only published data were used in the analyses.

Conclusions:

The systematic review and meta-analysis confirm the previous results of increased cancer risk in diabetes and extend this to additional cancer sites. Physicians in contact with patients with diabetes should be aware that diabetes patients are at an increased risk of cancer.

Plasma insulin, C-peptide and blood glucose and the risk of gastric cancer: the Japan Public Health Center-based prospective study

To date, the association between diabetes mellitus (DM) and gastric cancer has been controversial, including the underlying mechanism. We investigated the association between plasma diabetic biomarkers (insulin, C-peptide, and blood glucose) and gastric cancer risk. In addition, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and homeostasis model assessment of β-cell function (HOMA-β) were calculated. A total of 36,745 subjects aged 40-69 years in the Japan Public Health Center-based prospective study (JPHC) who returned the baseline questionnaire and provided blood samples were followed from 1990 to 2004. In the present analysis, 477 cases and 477 matched controls were used. The odds ratios (ORs) and their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for developing gastric cancer were calculated using conditional logistic regression models. Plasma insulin was positively associated with increased risk of gastric cancer; compared to tertile 1, ORs were 1.69 (95% CI = 1.11-2.59) and 2.01 (1.19-3.38) for tertiles 2 and 3, respectively (p for trend = 0.009). In men, C-peptide was also positively associated with a significant risk; corresponding ORs were 1.42 (0.85-2.38) and 1.91 (1.03-3.54), respectively (p for trend = 0.04). These findings were confirmed for blood samples from the fasting group (≥8 hr after a meal). Higher HOMA-IR was also associated with increased risk, whereas no association was observed for blood glucose. Our findings suggest that Japanese population with higher insulin and C-peptide levels derived from insulin resistance have an elevated risk of gastric cancer.

Is diabetes mellitus associated with increased incidence and disease-specific mortality in endometrial cancer? A systematic review and meta-analysis of cohort studies

OBJECTIVE

To assess the association between diabetes mellitus (DM) and the incidence and disease-specific mortality of endometrial cancer (EC).

METHODS

MEDLINE, EMBASE and conference abstracts of the 2011-2013 Annual Meetings of Society of Gynecological Oncology were searched for reports of original cohort studies that enrolled diabetic and non-diabetic women who were free of EC at baseline to compare the incidence and disease-specific mortality of EC by DM status. The included reports were examined for demographic characteristics of study populations, study design, effect measures and risk of bias. Statistical heterogeneity was evaluated with Chi-square test of the Cochrane Q statistics at the 0.05 significance level and I(2) statistic. Publication bias was assessed by visual examination of a funnel plot and the Egger's test for small-study effects.

RESULTS

Twenty-nine cohort studies (17 prospective, 12 retrospective) were eligible for this review, 23 of which reported EC incidence, five reported disease-specific mortality and one reported both. For incidence of EC among women with versus without DM, the summary relative risk (RR) was 1.89 (95%CI, 1.46-2.45; p<0.001) and the summary incidence rate ratio was 1.61 (95%CI, 1.51-1.71; p<0.001). The pooled RR of disease-specific mortality was 1.32 (95%CI, 1.10-1.60; p=0.003), while results in the studies reporting standardized mortality ratios were inconsistent. There remains considerable amount of clinical and methodological heterogeneity among the included studies; moreover, the hazard ratios for incident EC showed significant statistical heterogeneity and therefore were not quantitatively synthesized.

CONCLUSIONS

There is consistent evidence for an independent association between DM and an increased risk of incident EC, while the association between DM and EC-specific mortality remains uncertain. Further studies with better considerations for selection bias, information bias and confounding will further facilitate causal inference involving DM and EC.

Significantly increased risk of cancer in diabetes mellitus patients: A meta-analysis of epidemiological evidence in Asians and non-Asians

Aims/Introduction:  Emerging evidence from observational studies suggests that diabetes mellitus affects the cancer risk. However, whether there are differences in the magnitude of the influence of diabetes among ethnic groups is unknown.

Materials and Methods:  We searched MEDLINE and the Cochrane Library for pertinent articles that had been published as of 4 April 2011, and included them in a meta‐analysis of the risk of all‐cancer mortality and incidence in diabetic subjects.

Results:  A total of 33 studies were included in the meta‐analysis, and they provided 156,132 diabetic subjects for the mortality analysis and 993,884 for the incidence analysis. Cancer mortality was approximately 3%, and cancer incidence was approximately 8%. The pooled adjusted risk ratio (RR) of all‐cancer mortality was significantly higher than for non‐diabetic people (RR 1.32 [CI 1.20–1.45] for Asians; RR 1.16 [CI 1.01–1.34] for non‐Asians). Diabetes was also associated with an increased RR of incidence across all cancer types (RR 1.23 [CI 1.09–1.39] for Asians; RR 1.15 [CI 0.94–1.43] for non‐Asians). The RR of incident cancer for Asian men was significantly higher than for non‐Asian men (P = 0.021).

Conclusions:  Diabetes is associated with a higher risk for incident cancer in Asian men than in non‐Asian men. In light of the exploding global epidemic of diabetes, particularly in Asia, a modest increase in the cancer risk will translate into a substantial socioeconomic burden. Our current findings underscore the need for clinical attention and better‐designed studies of the complex interactions between diabetes and cancer. (J Diabetes Invest, doi: 10.1111/j.2040‐1124.2011.00183.x, 2012)

Diabetes mellitus and risk of thyroid cancer: a meta-analysis

INTRODUCTION

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is an important risk factor for endocrine cancers; however, the association with thyroid cancer is not clear. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis to clarify the association between thyroid cancer and DM.

METHODS

We searched MEDLINE, PUBMED and EMBASE databases through July 2012, using search terms related to diabetes mellitus, cancer, and thyroid cancer. We conducted a meta-analysis of the risk of incidence of thyroid cancer from pre-existing diabetes. Of 2,123 titles initially identified, sixteen articles met our inclusion criteria. An additional article was identified from a bibliography. Totally, 14 cohort and 3 case-control studies were selected for the meta-analysis. The risks were estimated using random-effects model and sensitivity test for the studies which reported risk estimates and used different definition of DM.

RESULTS

Compared with individuals without DM, the patients with DM were at 1.34-fold higher risk for thyroid cancer (95% CI 1.11-1.63). However, there was heterogeneity in the results (p<0.0001). Sensitivity tests and studies judged to be high quality did not show heterogeneity and DM was associated with higher risk for thyroid cancer in these sub-analyses (both of RRs = 1.18, 95% CIs 1.08-1.28). DM was associated with a 1.38-fold increased risk of thyroid cancer in women (95% CI 1.13-1.67) after sensitivity test. Risk of thyroid cancer in men did not remain significant (RR 1.11, 95% CI 0.80-1.53).

CONCLUSIONS

Compared with their non-diabetic counterparts, women with pre-existing DM have an increased risk of thyroid cancer.

Diabetes mellitus increases the risk of early gastric cancer development

BACKGROUND

The significance of diabetes mellitus (DM) in gastric carcinogenesis still remains unclear. We investigated whether DM would be a risk factor for the development of early gastric cancer.

METHODS

Factors related to the presence of gastric cancer were examined in patients undergoing medical health checkups. We then investigated whether DM was related to the development of early gastric cancer during an endoscopic follow-up study.

RESULTS

Gastric cancer was detected in 14 (1.0%) of 1463 patients at the first endoscopic examination and was significantly associated with the severity of gastric atrophy and the presence of DM. During the follow-up period (range 36-108 months; mean 70.0 months), early gastric cancer was newly detected in 26 (1.8%) of the 1449 patients in whom gastric cancer had not been detected at the first examination. Gastric cancer was detected in 17 (1.3%) of 1301 patients without DM, and in 9 (6.1%) of 148 patients with DM (P < 0.0001). Multivariate analyses demonstrated that open-type gastric atrophy and DM were independently related to the development of early gastric cancer (P < 0.0001 and P = 0.020, respectively). Gastric cancer was identified in 14 (5.1%) of 274 patients who had open-type atrophic gastritis without DM, whereas it was identified in 8 (16.0%) of 50 patients who had both open-type atrophic gastritis and DM (P = 0.0042).

CONCLUSION

DM increases the risk of early gastric cancer development.

Cancer risks among patients with type 2 diabetes: a 10-year follow-up study of a nationwide population-based cohort in Taiwan

BACKGROUND

This study aims to determine cancer risks among patients with type 2 diabetes through a follow-up study on a nationwide population-based cohort that included Taiwanese diabetic patients and general population in Taiwan as well as to estimate the population attributable fraction (PAF) of site-specific cancer risks that can be attributed to type 2 diabetes in Taiwanese population by using standardized incidence ratios (SIRs, 95% CI).

METHODS

Subjects with type 2 diabetes consisted of 472,979 patients aged ≥ 20 years, whereas general population consisted of 9,411,249 individuals of the same age limit but are not diabetic. Subjects were identified from 1997 to 1998 and followed up until December 31, 2007 or until the first manifestation of any cancer.

RESULTS

Cancer sites with increased risks in men, which were consistent with the main and sensitivity analyses, included pancreas (SIR=1.62; 95% CI=1.53 to 1.72), liver (1.61; 1.57 to 1.64), kidney (1.32; 1.25 to 1.40), oral (1.16, 1.12 to 1.21), and colorectal (1.19, 1.15 to 1.22). Cancer sites with increased risks in women included liver (1.55; 1.51 to 1.60), pancreas (1.44; 1.34 to 1.55), kidney (1.38; 1.30 to 1.46), endometrium (1.36; 1.26 to 1.47), bladder (1.19; 1.11 to 1.27), colorectal (1.16; 1.13 to 1.20), and breast (1.14; 1.09 to 1.18). Overall, PAFs were highest for liver cancer in men (4.0%) and women (3.7%), followed by pancreas (3.4%) and kidney (1.6%) cancers in men, and then for endometrium (1.8%) and kidney (1.8%) cancers in women.

CONCLUSION

Our data suggested that increased cancer risks are associated with type 2 diabetes.

Does chronic obstructive pulmonary disease with or without type 2 diabetes mellitus influence the risk of lung cancer? Result from a population-based cohort study

Background

Previous studies have suggested that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an independent risk factor for lung cancer. There are some evidence that people with diabetes are at a risk of developing many forms of cancer, but inconclusive with regard to lung cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether COPD with or without type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) influences the risk of developing lung cancer.

Methods

This is a retrospective cohort study consisting of 20,730 subjects newly diagnosed with COPD (“cases”). Their data was collected from the National Health Insurance system of Taiwan from 1998 to 2010. Among these patients, 5,820 patients had T2DM and 14,910 patients did not have T2DM. The retrospective matched control group consisted of 20,729 subjects without either COPD or T2DM. The control group was matched with the cases for sex, age, and index year (the year that the patient was diagnosed with COPD). The subjects were followed until the end of 2011.

Results

The findings of our study showed that the risk of lung cancer was higher in the COPD group than in the non-COPD group, with adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of 5.02 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 4.23–5.94] among total case group, adjusted HR was 5.38 (95% CI = 4.52–6.40) in the cohort without T2DM and adjusted HR was 4.05 (95% CI = 3.26–5.03) in the cohort with T2DM. We observed a significantly protective effect from lung cancer (adjusted HR = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.63–0.90) of diabetic cohort than non-diabetic cohort among patients with COPD.

Conclusion

Patients with COPD had a significantly higher risk of developing lung cancer than healthy people. However, there was a protective effect of T2DM for lung cancer among patients with COPD. Further investigation may be needed to corroborate the mechanism or bring up reliable reasons.

Cancer biology in diabetes

Diabetes is a serious metabolic disease that causes multiple organ dysfunctions. Recent evidence suggests that diabetes could contribute to the initiation and progression of certain cancers in addition to the classic diabetic complications. Furthermore, some of the drugs used clinically to treat patients with diabetes might affect cancer initiation, progression and mortality. The recent discovery of the possible anticancer effects of metformin, a classic antidiabetic drug, has led physicians and scientists to reconsider the interaction between diabetes and cancer. In the present review, we analyze recent reports in this field, and explore possible mechanistic links between diabetes and cancer biology.

Investigating the synergistic interaction of diabetes, tobacco smoking, alcohol consumption, and hypercholesterolemia on the risk of pancreatic cancer: a case-control study in Italy

The aims of the present research are to investigate the possible predictors of pancreatic cancer, in particular smoking status, alcohol consumption, hypercholesterolemia, and diabetes mellitus, in patients with histologically confirmed pancreatic carcinoma and to examine the synergism between risk factors. A case-control study (80 patients and 392 controls) was conducted at the Teaching Hospital “Agostino Gemelli” in Rome. A conditional logistic regression was used for the statistical analysis and results were presented as odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI). We also investigated the possible interactions between risk factors and calculated the synergism index (SI). The multivariate analysis revealed that hypercholesterolemia and alcohol consumption resulted in important risk factors for pancreatic cancer even after the adjustment for all variables (OR: 5.05, 95% CI: 2.94–8.66; OR: 2.25, 95% CI: 1.30–3.89, resp.). Interestingly, important synergistic interactions between risk factors were found, especially between ever smoking status and alcohol consumptions (SI = 17.61) as well as alcohol consumption and diabetes (SI = 17.77). In conclusion, the study confirms that hypercholesterolemia and alcohol consumption represent significant and independent risk factors for pancreatic cancer. Moreover, there is evidence of synergistic interaction between diabetes and lifestyle factors (drinking alcohol and eating fatty foods).

Hyperglycemia, a neglected factor during cancer progression

Recent evidence from large cohort studies suggests that there exists a higher cancer incidence in people with type 2 diabetes (DM2). However, to date, the potential reasons for this association remain unclear. Hyperglycemia, the most important feature of diabetes, may be responsible for the excess glucose supply for these glucose-hungry cells, and it contributes to apoptosis resistance, oncogenesis, and tumor cell resistance to chemotherapy. Considering associations between diabetes and malignancies, the effect of hyperglycemia on cancer progression in cancer patients with abnormal blood glucose should not be neglected. In this paper, we describe the role that hyperglycemia plays in cancer progression and treatment and illustrate that hyperglycemia may contribute to a more malignant phenotype of cancer cells and lead to drug resistance. Therefore, controlling hyperglycemia may have important therapeutic implications in cancer patients.

Liver disease and diabetes: association, pathophysiology, and management

Diabetes is associated with a spectrum of liver diseases including nonalcoholic liver disease, steatohepatitis, and liver cirrhosis with their increased complications and mortality. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) and its associated liver cirrhosis has been associated with diabetes through insulin resistance. Cryptogenic diabetes occurs as a consequence of liver cirrhosis with the pathophysiology being complex, but mostly attributed to the increased insulin resistance in muscle, liver, and adipose tissue. As for the management of diabetes in patients with liver disease, lifestyle modification plays an important role. Oral diabetic medications are contraindicated in patients with advanced liver diseases with associated cirrhosis, ascites, or encephalopathy. As for stable liver disease, metformin and thiazolenediones have shown mixed results, with some showing them to be effective in improving liver transaminases in addition to histological improvement in steatosis and inflammation. α-glucosidase inhibitors may be helpful in decreasing hepatic encephalopathy. Upregulation of Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) has been suggested as a possible pathogenetic mechanism for HCV-related insulin resistance, and treatment with DPP-4 inhibitors could improve insulin sensitivity in diabetic patients with liver disease. Patients with impaired liver function with associated insulin resistance may need increased insulin requirements. On the other hand patients with altered liver metabolism might need decreased insulin requirements.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) incidence is increasing worldwide in recent years. Most HCC cases develop in the presence of advanced chronic liver disease related to chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, chronic hepatitis B (HBV) infection, and alcohol abuse. Approximately 15-50% of HCC cases are classified as idiopathic, suggesting that other risk factors are responsible for its rising incidence. Recent studies suggest that nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) can be associated with these "idiopathic" cases. NAFLD progresses slowly and can develop into liver cirrhosis, liver failure, and HCC. In the last few years, NAFLD has received more attention because of its high prevalence worldwide.

Association of diabetes mellitus and pancreatic adenocarcinoma: a meta-analysis of 88 studies

BACKGROUND

Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is often diagnosed at an advanced, incurable stage. Previous epidemiological data suggests that diabetes mellitus (DM) is a risk factor for PDAC, which may be important in early detection. However, the strength of this association needs to be determined, taking into account a number of recently published studies.

METHODS

A systematic review of the association between DM and PDAC was undertaken by searching electronic databases and journal references from 1973 to 2013. Summary estimates were obtained separately for case-control and cohort studies by means of a 'random effects' approach. Data pertaining to the DM was recorded and plotted at both an individual and study level, with the relative risks (RR) pooled separately to determine the relationship of DM duration and PDAC.

RESULTS

A total of 88 independent studies, including 50 cohort and 39 case-control studies were examined. The overall summary-combined RR was 1.97 (95 % CI 1.78-2.18) with marked heterogeneity that could not be clearly attributed to any subgroup analyses. The risk of PDAC was greatest early after the diagnosis of DM but remained elevated long after the diagnosis. The individual-level RR ranged from 6.69 at less than 1 year to 1.36 at 10 years.

CONCLUSION

The results demonstrate a strong association between PDAC and recently diagnosed DM, which may be attributed to a paraneoplastic effect. However, the presence of diabetes also remains a modest risk factor for the development of PDAC long-term. Selective screening of patients with new-onset DM for PDAC needs to be considered.

Immune-related conditions and subsequent risk of brain cancer in a cohort of 4.5 million male US veterans

Background:

Case–control studies have reported an inverse association between self-reported history of allergy and risk of glioma, but cohort data are limited. Our objectives were to evaluate the associations of major groups of medically diagnosed immune-related conditions (allergy/atopy, autoimmune disease, diabetes, infectious/inflammatory disease) and to explore associations with specific conditions in relation to subsequent diagnosis of brain cancer in a large cohort study.

Methods:

We used hospital discharge records for a cohort of 4.5 million male US veterans, of whom 4383 developed primary brain cancer. Rate ratios (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using time-dependent Poisson regression.

Results:

We found a significant trend of decreasing RRs for brain cancer with longer duration of allergy/atopy (P=0.02), but not for other conditions studied. Rate ratios of brain cancer for allergy/atopy and diabetes with duration of 10 or more years were 0.60 (95% CI: 0.43, 0.83) and 0.75 (95% CI: 0.62, 0.93), respectively. Several associations with specific conditions were found, but these did not withstand correction for multiple comparisons.

Conclusions:

This study lends some support to an inverse association between allergy/atopy and diabetes of long duration and brain cancer risk, but prospective studies with biological samples are needed to uncover the underlying biological mechanisms.

Metabolic risk factors for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma: a prospective study of 580,000 subjects within the Me-Can project

Background

Obesity is associated with an increased risk of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC) and a decreased risk of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). However, little is known about the risk of EAC and ESCC related to other metabolic risk factors. We aimed to examine the risk of EAC and ESCC in relation to metabolic risk factors, separately and combined in a prospective cohort study.

Methods

The Metabolic Syndrome and Cancer cohort includes prospective cohorts in Austria, Norway and Sweden, with blood pressure, lipids, glucose and BMI available from 578 700 individuals. Relative risk (RR) for EAC and ESCC was calculated using Cox’s proportional hazards analysis for metabolic risk factors categorized into quintiles and transformed into z-scores. The standardized sum of all z-scores was used as a composite score for the metabolic syndrome (MetS).

Results

In total, 324 histologically verified cases of esophageal cancer were identified (114 EAC, 184 ESCC and 26 with other histology). BMI was associated with an increased risk of EAC (RR 7.34 (95% confidence interval, 2.88-18.7) top versus bottom quintile) and negatively associated with the risk of ESCC (RR 0.38 (0.23-0.62)). The mean value of systolic and diastolic blood pressure (mid blood pressure) was associated with the risk of ESCC (RR 1.77 (1.37-2.29)). The composite MetS score was associated with the risk of EAC (RR 1.56 (1.19-2.05) per one unit increase of z-score) but not ESCC.

Conclusions

In accordance with previous studies, high BMI was associated with an increased risk of EAC and a decreased risk of ESCC. An association between high blood pressure and risk of ESCC was observed but alcohol consumption is a potential confounding factor that we were not able to adjust for in the analysis. The MetS was associated with EAC but not ESCC. However this association was largely driven by the strong association between BMI and EAC. We hypothesize that this association is more likely to be explained by factors directly related to obesity than the metabolic state of the MetS, considering that no other metabolic factor than BMI was associated with EAC.

MicroRNA expression profiling and functional annotation analysis of their targets in patients with type 1 diabetes mellitus

Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) results from an autoimmune attack against the insulin-producing pancreatic β-cells, leading to elimination of insulin production. The exact cause of this disorder is still unclear. Although the differential expression of microRNAs (miRNAs), small non-coding RNAs that control gene expression in a post-transcriptional manner, has been identified in many diseases, including T1DM, only scarce information exists concerning miRNA expression profile in T1DM. Thus, we employed the microarray technology to examine the miRNA expression profiles displayed by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from T1DM patients compared with healthy subjects. Total RNA extracted from PBMCs from 11 T1DM patients and nine healthy subjects was hybridized onto Agilent human miRNA microarray slides (V3), 8x15K, and expression data were analyzed on R statistical environment. After applying the rank products statistical test, the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves were generated and the areas under the ROC curves (AUC) were calculated. To examine the functions of the differentially expressed (p-value<0.01, percentage of false-positives <0.05) miRNAs that passed the AUC cutoff value ≥ 0.90, the database miRWalk was used to predict their potential targets, which were afterwards submitted to the functional annotation tool provided by the Database for Annotation, Visualization, and Integrated Discovery (DAVID), version 6.7, using annotations from the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis. We found 57 probes, corresponding to 44 different miRNAs (35 up-regulated and 9 down-regulated), that were differentially expressed in T1DM and passed the AUC threshold of 0.90. The hierarchical clustering analysis indicated the discriminatory power of those miRNAs, since they were able to clearly distinguish T1DM patients from healthy individuals. Target prediction indicated that 47 candidate genes for T1DM are potentially regulated by the differentially expressed miRNAs. After performing functional annotation analysis of the predicted targets, we observed 22 and 12 annotated KEGG pathways for the induced and repressed miRNAs, respectively. Interestingly, many pathways were enriched for the targets of both up- and down-regulated miRNAs and the majority of those pathways have been previously associated with T1DM, including many cancer-related pathways. In conclusion, our study indicated miRNAs that may be potential biomarkers of T1DM as well as provided new insights into the molecular mechanisms involved in this disorder.