Association of Periodontal Disease and Tooth Loss with Cancer in Korean Adults: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Study

The precise mechanisms underlying cancer development remain unclear, and limited research has been con-ducted on the association between periodontal health and cancer in the Korean population. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between periodontal status and tooth loss with the cancer risk among Korean adults by using data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2010-2018).

This cross-sectional study included 13,616 adults aged ≥ 19 years who participated in health surveys and oral examinations. Logistic regression analysis was conducted to evaluate the associations of periodontal status (com-munity periodontal index [CPI]) and tooth loss with cancer. We adjusted the model for demographic, health-related, and oral health-related factors in a stepwise fashion to minimise confounding variables.

Participants with a CPI score of 3-4 (indicating periodontitis) had slightly higher odds of having cancer in minimally adjusted models than those with a CPI score of 0, but this association was not significant after full adjustment. Conversely, individuals with eight or more missing teeth showed consistently higher odds of having cancer than those with no missing teeth across all models, even after adjusting for confounders (adjusted odds ratio: 1.23; 95% CI: 1.11-1.73).

The findings suggest that tooth loss may be a stronger indicator of cancer risk than periodontal disease. Further studies with longitudinal designs are needed to clarify the causal relationships between oral health and cancer development.