Study Finds Link Between Periodontitis and Cancer Risk

A collaborative study has found additional evidence supporting an association between increased cancer risk among patients with periodontitis. The study, “Periodontal Disease Assessed Using Clinical Dental Measurements and Cancer Risk in the ARIC Study,” published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, found a 24% increase in the risk of developing cancer among participants with severe periodontitis (defined as more than 30% of sites with attachment loss greater than 3 mm), compared with those who had no or mild periodontitis. Among participants who were edentulous, cancer risk increased by 28%.

Researchers from Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston and Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Kimmel Cancer Center in Baltimore used data from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study, which included comprehensive dental exams from 7466 participants from Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi and North Carolina. Subjects were followed from the late 1990s until 2012. The data showed that 1648 new cancer cases were diagnosed during the follow-up period.

Investigators discovered that participants with severe periodontitis had more than double the risk of lung cancer than those with no or mild periodontitis. An 80% increase in colon cancer risk was observed for participants who were edentulous at baseline and, interestingly, among never-smokers. A twofold increase in colon cancer risk was observed for participants with severe periodontitis compared with those who had no or mild periodontitis. No associations were found for breast, prostate or hematopoietic/lymphatic cancer risk. The researchers suggest that additional study is needed to learn more about cancer risk and periodontal disease.