# Associations of Head and Neck Cancer with Prior Allergic Rhinitis

## TL;DR

This study finds that people with a history of allergic rhinitis are more likely to develop head and neck cancers, suggesting a possible link between chronic inflammation and cancer risk.

## Contribution

The study provides new evidence of a significant association between allergic rhinitis and specific head and neck cancers using a large population-based dataset.

## Key findings

- Individuals with allergic rhinitis had a 55.9% higher adjusted odds of developing head and neck cancer compared to controls.
- The strongest associations were observed for nasopharyngeal and sinonasal cancers, with odds ratios of 2.933 and 3.100, respectively.
- Allergic rhinitis was significantly linked to increased risks of larynx, hypopharynx, salivary gland, and thyroid cancers.

## Abstract

This investigation explores the link between allergic rhinitis (AR) and the onset of head and neck cancers (HNC) utilizing a robust, population-based dataset from Taiwan’s Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2010. In our case-control study, we analyzed data from 14,913 individuals newly diagnosed with HNC and 59,652 controls matched based on propensity scores. Our findings revealed that 20.19% of the participants had a history of AR, with a higher prevalence observed in the HNC group relative to the controls (26.20% vs. 18.70%). The adjusted odds ratio for prior AR in the HNC cohort was 1.559 (95% CI = 1.494–1.627), suggesting a significant association between AR and increased risk of developing HNC, particularly cancers of the nasopharynx, sinonasal cavities, larynx, salivary glands, and thyroid.

Background/Objectives: Chronic inflammation has been implicated in cancer development, but the association between allergic rhinitis (AR) and head and neck cancer (HNC) remains unclear. This study aims to investigate this potential relationship using a population-based dataset. Methods: Utilizing the Taiwan Longitudinal Health Insurance Database 2010, we conducted a case-control study encompassing 14,913 HNC patients and 59,652 propensity-score matched controls. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to quantitatively evaluate the association between HNC and prior AR, adjusting for demographic factors and medical comorbidities such as hyperlipidemia, diabetes, hypertension, tobacco use disorder, HPV infection, and alcohol-related disorders. Results: This study identified that 20.19% of the entire cohort had a prior diagnosis of AR, with a significantly higher prevalence in HNC patients relative to controls (26.2% vs. 18.70%). The adjusted odds ratio (OR) for previous AR in HNC patients was 1.559 (95% CI = 1.494–1.627). Furthermore, site-specific analysis revealed increased odds ratios for AR among patients with cancers of the larynx (OR = 1.537, 95% CI = 1.307–1.807), hypopharynx (OR = 1.220, 95% CI = 1.035–1.437), nasopharynx (OR = 2.933, 95% CI = 2.722–3.160), sinonasal (OR = 3.100, 95% CI = 2.424–3.964), salivary glands (OR = 1.470, 95% CI = 1.158–1.865), and thyroid (OR = 1.566, 95% CI = 1.447–1.693). Conclusions: The findings robustly support a significant link between AR and an elevated risk of developing HNC, notably affecting the nasopharynx, sinonasal cavities, larynx, salivary glands, and thyroid.