Cancer and Mortality Risks of Graves’ Disease in South Korea Based on National Data from 2010 to 2019

Abstract

Purpose

This study aimed to investigate Graves’ disease (GD) associated cancer and mortality risk using a Korean population-based study.

Patients and Methods

We included 6435 patients with GD using the Korean National Health Insurance Service–National Sample Cohort database from 2010 to 2019. Data concerning such patients were compared in a 1:5 ratio with age- and sex-matched non-GD group (n=32,175). Eighteen subdivided types of cancer and cancers-in-total were analyzed. In addition to the mortality analysis, subgroup analyses were performed according to age and sex.

Results

After adjustment, the hazard ratio (HR) of the GD group for cancer-in-total was 1.07 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.91–1.27), showing no difference when compared to the non-GD group. However, among different types of cancer, the thyroid cancer risk of the GD group was higher than that of the non-GD group (HR=1.70; 95% CI, 1.20–2.39). When subdivided by age and sex, the thyroid cancer risk of the GD group in males aged 20–39 years was higher than that of the non-GD group (HR=7.00; 95% CI, 1.48–33.12). The mortality risk of the GD group was not different from that of the non-GD group (HR=0.86; 95% CI, 0.70–1.05).

Conclusion

In South Korea, patients with GD had a higher risk of thyroid cancer than the non-GD group. In particular, males aged 20–39 years with GD were more likely to have thyroid cancer than the non-GD group.

Keywords:

• Graves disease
• neoplasms
• mortality
• Republic of Korea

Data Sharing Statement

All files for the analysis of the present study are available at the national health insurance sharing service webpage (https://nhiss.nhis.or.kr).

Ethical Statement

This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of the Catholic University of Korea (IRB approval Number: SC22ZASE0159).

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to acknowledge the financial support of the Institute of Clinical Medicine Research at Yeouido St. Mary’s Hospital, Catholic University of Korea.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by a grant from the Institute of Clinical Medicine Research at Yeouido St. Mary’s Hospital, Catholic University of Korea.