ArticlePloS one2022
BMI and HbA1c are metabolic markers for pancreatic cancer: Matched case-control study using a UK primary care database.
Article in PloS one, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 24 citations in OpenAlex.
- Quantifying Weight Loss Prior to Pancreatic Cancer Diagnosis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Cancer medicine · 2026Pooled it
- Anthropometric traits, metabolic biomarkers, and pancreatic cancer risk: a causal mediation analysis in UK Biobank.British journal of cancer · 2026Article
- The use of blood test trends in cancer detection: a scoping review.Diagnostic and prognostic research · 2026Review
- Early glycaemic exposure and cancer risk in people with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes.Diabetologia · 2026Article
- Article
- Metabolic Syndrome and Pancreatic Cancer: Linking Insulin Resistance, Inflammation, and Carcinogenesis.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Decision support tools for pancreatic cancer detection: external validation in Australian primary care - a retrospective cohort study.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026Article
- Integrating the management of ultra-processed food addiction into type 2 diabetes care: a clinical response to De Silva et al, (2025) and practical recommendations for practitioners.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2025Article
- Current paradigm and futuristic vision on new-onset diabetes and pancreatic cancer research.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2025Review
- Elevated HbA1c Levels Are Associated with a Risk of Pancreatic Cancer: A Case-Control Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
- Article
- The Association between Blood Test Trends and Undiagnosed Cancer: A Systematic Review and Critical Appraisal.Cancers · 2024Review
- Article
- Article
- Diabetes Mellitus in Pancreatic Cancer: A Distinct Approach to Older Subjects with New-Onset Diabetes Mellitus.Cancers · 2023Review
- Association of Weight Loss in Ambulatory Care Settings With First Diagnosis of Lung Cancer in the US.JAMA network open · 2023Article
- A deep learning algorithm to predict risk of pancreatic cancer from disease trajectories.Nature medicine · 2023Article
- Association Between Visceral Fat Area and Glycated Hemoglobin in Type 2 Diabetics: A Retrospective Study.Diabetes, metabolic syndrome and obesity : targets and therapy · 2023Article
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Authors and funding
13 authors at 6 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundWeight loss, hyperglycaemia and diabetes are known features of pancreatic cancer. We quantified the timing and the amount of changes in body mass index (BMI) and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c), and their association with pancreatic cancer from five years before diagnosis.
methodsA matched case-control study was undertaken within 590 primary care practices in England, United Kingdom. 8,777 patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer (cases) between 1st January 2007 and 31st August 2020 were matched to 34,979 controls by age, gender and diabetes. Longitudinal trends in BMI and HbA1c were visualised. Odds ratios adjusted for demographic and lifestyle factors (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated with conditional logistic regression. Subgroup analyses were undertaken according to the diabetes status.
resultsChanges in BMI and HbA1c observed for cases on longitudinal plots started one and two years (respectively) before diagnosis. In the year before diagnosis, a 1 kg/m2 decrease in BMI between cases and controls was associated with aOR for pancreatic cancer of 1.05 (95% CI 1.05 to 1.06), and a 1 mmol/mol increase in HbA1c was associated with aOR of 1.06 (1.06 to 1.07). ORs remained statistically significant (p < 0.001) for 2 years before pancreatic cancer diagnosis for BMI and 3 years for HbA1c. Subgroup analysis revealed that the decrease in BMI was associated with a higher pancreatic cancer risk for people with diabetes than for people without (aORs 1.08, 1.06 to 1.09 versus 1.04, 1.03 to 1.05), but the increase in HbA1c was associated with a higher risk for people without diabetes than for people with diabetes (aORs 1.09, 1.07 to 1.11 versus 1.04, 1.03 to 1.04).
conclusionsThe statistically significant changes in weight and glycaemic control started three years before pancreatic cancer diagnosis but varied according to the diabetes status. The information from this study could be used to detect pancreatic cancer earlier than is currently achieved. However, regular BMI and HbA1c measurements are required to facilitate future research and implementation in clinical practice.
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