Association of nasopharynx cancer with obstructive sleep apnea

Despite the extensive research conducted on the association between OSA and HNCs, the specific relationship between obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) has received comparatively less attention. The present study aimed to explore the association between OSA and NPC.

The data for this study was drawn from the Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2010. The study incorporated a total of 3,235 NPC patients and 12,940 propensity score-matched controls. The NPC and controls' baseline clinical and demographic parameters were compared using standardized mean difference. A conditional logistic regression model was developed in order to quantify the association between OSA and the odds of NPC.

The prevalence of prior OSA was significantly higher in the NPC group than in the control group (2.07% vs. 1.51%, p = 0.023). Following the adjustment for a comprehensive set of confounders, including age, sex, income, geography, urbanization, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, COPD, chronic rhinitis, sinusitis, human papillomavirus infection, tobacco use disorder, and alcohol-related disorders, pre-existing OSA remained associated with an increased odds of developing NPC (adjusted OR = 1.42, 95% CI = 1.07, 1.89). In sex-stratified analysis, the point estimates for the association between OSA and NPC were similar for both males (adjusted OR = 1.41, 95% CI = 1.03, 1.94) and females (adjusted OR = 1.46, 95% CI = 0.77, 2.78). While the association only reached statistical significance in the males, the lack of significance in females may be indicative of lower statistical precision due to the smaller sample size.

The present study identifies an association between prior OSA diagnosis and NPC, particularly in the males. Further investigation is required to confirm this relationship and its underlying mechanisms.