ArticleAnnals of epidemiology2018
Laxative type in relation to colorectal cancer risk.
Article in Annals of epidemiology, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Medication use and risk of proximal colon cancer: a systematic review of prospective studies with narrative synthesis and meta-analysis.Cancer causes & control : CCC · 2021Pooled it
- Eating disorders and the risk of developing cancer: a systematic review.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2021Pooled it
- Temporal association of constipation and diarrhoea with a subsequent diagnosis of colorectal cancer: a propensity score-matched case-control study using real-world primary care data.BMJ open gastroenterology · 2026Article
- Eating Disorders and Later Incidence of Cancer: A Nationwide Longitudinal Study in Denmark.Biological psychiatry global open science · 2025Article
- Effect of laxative use and laxative type on colorectal cancer risk: A pooling up analysis and evidence synthesis.Oncology letters · 2025Article
- Review article: do stimulant laxatives damage the gut? A critical analysis of current knowledge.Therapeutic advances in gastroenterology · 2024Review
- The Association between Prebiotic Fiber Supplement Use and Colorectal Cancer Risk and Mortality in the Women's Health Initiative.Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
purposeExisting studies on laxatives, used by roughly 40% of the U.S. population experiencing constipation and colorectal cancer (CRC) have yielded inconsistent results, which may be due to a failure to account for differential risks by major laxative types: bulk (fiber-based), and nonbulk (or nonfiber-based).
methodsWe examined the association of nonfiber-based laxative use and fiber-based laxative use with the risk of CRC in a subset of the multisite, International Colon Cancer Family Registry cohort comprising 4930 primary invasive CRC cases and 4025 controls selected from the general population. Epidemiologic risk factor questionnaires were administered to all participants at recruitment, and exposures were ascertained approximately 1 year before diagnosis for cases and at a comparable period for controls. We ascertained known and suspected CRC risk factors, including regular laxative use, which was defined as laxative intake at least twice a week for more than a month. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to estimate the adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs).
resultsIndividuals who reported using nonfiber-based laxatives regularly were at a significantly increased risk for CRC compared with those who reported no laxative use (OR = 2.17, 95% CI = 1.47-3.19). No statistically significant associations were observed between fiber-based laxative use and CRC (OR = 0.99, 95% CI = 0.80-1.22).
conclusionsCompared with nonusers, the risk of CRC increased with nonfiber-based laxative use, whereas CRC risk was not significantly associated with fiber-based laxative use.
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