Diabetes Linked to Increased Cancer, Noncancer Death Risk

Diabetes is associated with a significantly increased risk of premature death from cardiovascular events, cancer, and other noncardiovascular and noncancer causes, according to a recent study.

Using pooled analysis of data from 13 Spanish population cohorts with 10-year follow-up including 55,292 individuals (15.6% with diabetes), the researchers sought to assess the association between diabetes and cause-specific death.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
RELATED CONTENT
Adrenal Tumors Can Cause Severe Hypertension & Diabetes
Adrenal Insufficiency and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Any Connection?
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Overall, adjusted hazard ratios showed that diabetes increased mortality risk as follows:

(1) cardiovascular death, cause-specific hazard (CSH) = 2.03 and proportional subdistribution hazard (PSH) = 1.99 in men, and CSH = 2.28 and PSH = 2.23 in women

(2) cancer death, CSH = 1.37 and PSH = 1.35 in men; and CSH = 1.68 and PSH = 1.66 in women

(3) noncardiovascular noncancer death, CSH = 1.53 and PSH = 1.50 in men; and CSH = 1.89 and PSH = 1.84 in women.

“Diabetes is associated with premature death from cardiovascular disease, cancer, and noncardiovascular noncancer causes,” the researchers concluded. “The use of CSH and PSH provides a comprehensive view of mortality dynamics in a population with diabetes.”

—Michael Potts

Reference:

Baena-Díez JM, Peñafiel J, Subirana I, et al. Risk of cause-specific death in individuals with diabetes: a competing risks analysis [published online August 4, 2016]. Diabetes Care. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.2337/dc16-0614.