Observational studyClinical rheumatology2025
Association between rheumatoid arthritis and thyroid cancer risk: a real-world cohort study using TriNetX.
Observational study in Clinical rheumatology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Meta-analysis and systematic review: the association between rheumatoid arthritis and the risk of thyroid cancer.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Pooled it
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo evaluate the association between rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and the risk of developing thyroid cancer using real-world data.
methodsThis retrospective cohort study was conducted in June 2025 using data from the TriNetX Research Network, a global federated health platform aggregating anonymized electronic medical records from 28 healthcare organizations. Patients aged 20-84 years with RA were identified and matched 1:1 to controls without RA using propensity score matching. Two time-windows were used for cancer outcome assessment: primary analysis with 1-year lag and sensitivity analysis with 180-day lag. Additionally, a Cox proportional hazards regression model was applied to estimate adjusted hazard ratio (HR), controlling for age, sex, and comorbidities.
resultsIn the primary analysis (1-year lag), 77 of 42,068 patients with RA and 14 of 42,121 controls developed thyroid cancer (cumulative incidence: 0.18% vs. 0.03%; risk ratio: 5.51, 95% CI: 3.12-9.73). In the sensitivity analysis (180-day lag), the association between RA and thyroid cancer remained significant (cumulative incidence: 0.21% vs. 0.05%; risk ratio: 4.36, 95% CI: 2.68-7.08). The Cox model yielded an adjusted HR of 1.40 (95% CI: 1.18-1.67, P < 0.001), further supporting the association between RA and increased thyroid cancer risk.
conclusionRheumatoid arthritis is associated with a significantly elevated risk of thyroid cancer. Further studies are needed to explore underlying mechanisms and guide cancer surveillance strategies in care of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Key Points • Patients with rheumatoid arthritis experience a significantly increased burden of cancers. • The Cox model yielded an adjusted hazard ratio of 1.40 (95% CI: 1.18-1.67), further supporting the association between rheumatoid arthritis and increased thyroid cancer risk. • Further studies are warranted to explore underlying mechanisms and guide cancer surveillance strategies in care of patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
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