Psoriasis and Risk of Colorectal Cancer: A Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study in Korea.

Area of Science:

• Dermatology
• Gastroenterology
• Oncology
• Epidemiology

Background:

• Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disease linked to higher cancer risk.
• The association between psoriasis and colorectal cancer (CRC) is not well-established, especially in Asia.
• Rising CRC incidence in Asia necessitates understanding its risk factors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the association between psoriasis and the risk of developing colorectal cancer (CRC).
• To determine if psoriasis independently contributes to CRC risk in a large population cohort.

Main Methods:

• Nationwide longitudinal cohort study (2002-2019) using Korean National Health Insurance data.
• 16,670 psoriasis patients matched 1:4 with 66,680 controls.
• Propensity score weighting and Cox proportional hazards models were used to analyze CRC incidence.

Main Results:

• Psoriasis was not associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer (adjusted HR = 0.96; 95% CI: 0.83-1.10).
• Kaplan-Meier analysis showed no significant difference in cumulative CRC incidence between groups.
• Subgroup analyses confirmed consistent null findings across various demographic and comorbidity strata.

Conclusions:

• Psoriasis is not independently associated with an increased risk of colorectal cancer in the Korean population.
• The findings do not support additional CRC surveillance for psoriasis patients beyond standard guidelines.
• Psoriasis does not appear to contribute to CRC risk at a population level.