Association Between Metabolic Syndrome and Incident Cervical Cancer: A Retrospective Cohort Study

To determine whether metabolic syndrome is associated with an elevated risk of cervical cancer.

We retrospectively analyzed data on 1,410,650 women without a history of cancer, using the JMDC Claims Database, a nationwide epidemiological database in Japan, between 2005 and 2022. The look-back period was set at 2 years. Cox regression analyses were conducted to assess cervical cancer risk associated with metabolic syndrome and its components (waist circumference, blood pressure, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and fasting plasma glucose). Further, we conducted age-stratified analyses.

Metabolic syndrome was diagnosed in 43,029 participants (median age: 53 years), and 1579 cervical cancer cases were recorded over a median follow-up of 942 days. Multivariable Cox regression analyses showed that metabolic syndrome was associated with a higher cervical cancer incidence (hazard ratio [HR], 1.38; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04-1.82). Among the metabolic factors, cancer risk was associated with higher plasma glucose (per 10 mg/dL increase) (HR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.01-1.08) and lower high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels (per 10 mg/dL decrease) (HR, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.02-1.10), whereas waist circumference, blood pressure, or triglyceride levels showed no significant relationship. Metabolic syndrome was associated with an increased risk of cervical cancer, with a stronger association observed in younger women in age-stratified analyses (p for interaction = 0.004).

Metabolic syndrome was associated with an increased risk of cervical cancer, with a stronger association observed among younger women. Elevated plasma glucose and low high-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels were identified as significant contributing factors.