Association between diabetes at different diagnostic ages and risk of cancer incidence and mortality - a cohort study

Sep 24, 2026

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Different ages at diabetes diagnosis may influence later health outcomes, yet evidence on cancer remains limited. This cohort study examined how diabetes diagnosed at distinct ages relates to cancer incidence and cancer mortality among participants aged 37–73 years. Using UK Biobank prospective data, investigators compared four diagnosis-age groups and estimated standardized incidence, incidence density, and mortality rates with Cox proportional hazards models, followed by subgroup analyses.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages12

Reading Time30 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Methods

Participants and study design

Statistical analysis

Results

Conclusion

TYPE Original Research PUBLISHED 11 October 2023 DOI 10.3389/fendo.2023.1277935 OPEN ACCESS EDITED BY Qiang Huo, Nanjing Jiangbei Hospital, China REVIEWED BY Daniel Boakye, Philip Morris International, Switzerland Maria Theresa Redaniel, University of Bristol, United Kingdom *CORRESPONDENCE Fangfang Song [songfangfang@tmu.edu.cn](songfangfang@tmu.edu.cn)[ ](songfangfang@tmu.edu.cn)Fengju Song [songfengju@163.com](songfengju@163.com) RECEIVED 15 August 2023 ACCEPTED 21 September 2023 PUBLISHED 11 October 2023 CITATION Peng Y, Liu F, Wang P, Qiao Y, Si C, Wang X, Gong J, Zhou H, Song F and Song F (2023) Association between diabetes at different diagnostic ages and risk of cancer incidence and mortality: a cohort study. Front. Endocrinol. 14:1277935 . doi: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1277935 COPYRIGHT © 2023 Peng, Liu, Wang, Qiao, Si, Wang, Gong, Zhou, Song and Song. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. Association between diabetes at different diagnostic ages and risk of cancer incidence and mortality: a cohort study Yu Peng, Fubin Liu, Peng Wang, Yating Qiao, Changyu Si, Xixuan Wang, Jianxiao Gong, Huijun Zhou, Fengju Song* and Fangfang Song* Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Key Laboratory of Molecular Cancer Epidemiology, Key Laboratory of Prevention and Control of Major Diseases in the Population, Ministry of Education, National Clinical Research Center for Cancer, Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin Medical University, Tianjin, China Background: Different ages for diagnosis of diabetes have diverse effects on risks of cardiovascular disease, dementia, and mortality, but there is little evidence of cancer. This study investigated the relationship between diabetes at different diagnostic ages and risks of cancer incidence and mortality in people aged 37–73 years. Methods: Participants with diabetes in the UK Biobank prospective cohort were divided into four groups: ≤40, 41–50, 51–60, and >60 years according to age at diagnosis. A total of 26,318 diabetics and 105,272 controls (1:4 randomly selected for each diabetic matched by the same baseline age) were included. We calculated the incidence density, standardized incidence, and mortality rates of cancer. Cox proportional hazard model was used to examine the associations of diabetes at different diagnostic ages with cancer incidence and mortality, followed by subgroup analyses. Results: Compared to corresponding controls, standardized incidence and mortality rates of overall and digestive system cancers were higher in diabetes diagnosed at age 41–50, 51–60, and >60 years, especially at 51–60 years. Individuals diagnosed with diabetes at different ages were at higher risk to develop site-speciﬁc cancers, with a prominently increased risk of liver cancer since the diagnosis age of >40 years. Signiﬁcantly, participants with diabetes diagnosed at 51–60 years were correlated with various site-speciﬁc cancer risks [hazard ratio (HR) for incidence: 1 .088–2.416, HR for mortality: 1 .276–3. 269] . Moreover, for mortality of digestive system cancers, we observed an interaction effect between smoking and diabetes diagnosed at 51–60 years. Conclusion: Our ﬁndings highlighted that the age at diagnosis of diabetes, especially 51–60 years, was critical risks of cancer incidence and mortality and may represent a potential preventative window for cancer. KEYWORDS diabetes, age at diagnosis, cancer incidence, cancer mortality, UK Biobank Frontiers in Endocrinology 01 [frontiersin.org](frontiersi

FAQs

How did the study categorize participants by age at diabetes diagnosis?

Participants with diabetes in the UK Biobank prospective cohort were divided into four groups: ≤40, 41–50, 51–60, and >60 years based on age at diagnosis.

What did the study find about cancer incidence and mortality across diagnosis-age groups?

Standardized incidence and mortality rates of overall and digestive system cancers were higher for diabetes diagnosed at ages 41–50, 51–60, and >60, with the most pronounced pattern observed at 51–60 years.

Is there evidence that smoking modifies cancer mortality risk in a specific diagnosis-age group?

For digestive system cancer mortality, the study observed an interaction effect between smoking and diabetes diagnosed at 51–60 years.

Sep 24, 2026

Uploaded by Grenda