Results from a study completed at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute indicate that in addition to smoking, obesity, and type 2 diabetes, periodontal disease is now associated with pancreatic cancer, the fourth leading cause of death in the United States. Data was compiled from the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, which includes 51,529 health professionals involved with the study since it was started in 1986. Every 2 years, participants answer questionnaires regarding their health status. Using the latest data compiled between 1986 and 2002, 216 cases of pancreatic cancer were identified, with 67 reporting periodontal disease. After removing all risk factors for the disease, such as age, smoking, BMI, etc, there was a 63% probability of developing pancreatic cancer when periodontal disease was present. Dominique Michaud, assistant professor of epidemiology at HSPH, indicated that this link might be the elevated levels of C-reactive protein and other serum biomarkers of inflammation contributing to the promotion of cancer cells. An alternative explanation could be the increased levels of oral bacteria and nitrosomines (carcinogens) in the oral cavity. Michaud and colleagues agree that more investigative studies need to be done using subjects outside of this population to confirm the findings and explore the inflammation factor.
(Source: hsph.harvard.edu/press/releases/press01162007B.html, January 16, 2007)
