# A Longitudinal Study Examining the Impact of Chronic Rhinosinusitis on the Risk of Cancer Development: A National Population-Based Cohort Study

## TL;DR

This study finds that chronic rhinosinusitis is linked to a higher cancer risk, especially in women without nasal polyps.

## Contribution

The study identifies a specific cancer risk in female CRS patients without nasal polyps using a large national database.

## Key findings

- CRS patients had a 16% higher cancer risk compared to controls (adjusted HR: 1.16).
- Female CRS patients without nasal polyps showed a particularly high cancer risk.
- CRS with nasal polyps was not associated with increased cancer risk.

## Abstract

Previous epidemiological studies have shown that chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is associated with an increased risk of various types of cancer and cancer-related mortality. Therefore, this study analyzed the association between CRS and cancer risk using a representative nationwide cohort database. Among 10,567 patients with CRS and 42,268 matched controls, CRS was linked to a higher cancer risk (adjusted HR: 1.16, 95% CI: 1.05–1.28). Female patients with CRS without nasal polyps exhibited a particularly high cancer risk. These findings highlight the need for careful monitoring and the development of tailored therapeutic strategies for CRS management.

Background/Objectives: We investigated the association between chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) and cancer risk in an adult Korean population. Methods: This retrospective cohort study used data from the Korean National Health Insurance Service database. To ensure comparability between the groups, adjustments were made for potential confounding factors, including sex, age, residence, household income, diabetes, hypertension, and chronic kidney disease. The primary endpoint was the presence of newly diagnosed cancer. Results: Among 1,337,120 individuals in the nationally representative cohort database, 10,567 patients with CRS were identified and matched with 42,268 control subjects without CRS. Patients with CRS had a significantly higher risk of overall cancer events than controls. The adjusted hazard ratio (HR) for cancer in the CRS group was 1.16 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.05–1.28). Notably, female patients with CRS had an elevated risk of incident cancer events. Furthermore, patients with CRS without nasal polyps exhibited a significantly increased risk of cancer, whereas those with CRS with nasal polyps did not show a similar association. Conclusions: These findings underscore the need for physicians to carefully monitor patients with CRS for potential cancer progression and develop appropriate therapeutic strategies to mitigate the impact of this condition.