title: Splanchnic venous thrombosis is a marker of cancer and a prognostic factor for cancer survival.
abstract: It is unknown if splanchnic venous thrombosis (SVT) is a marker of occult cancer and a prognostic factor for cancer survival. Using Danish medical registries, we conducted a nationwide cohort study including all patients with first-time SVT (n = 1191) between 1994 and 2011. We followed the patients for subsequent cancer diagnoses and calculated absolute risks and standardized incidence ratios (SIRs). We formed a matched comparison cohort of cancer patients without SVT, and assessed the prognostic impact of SVT on cancer survival by applying the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression. We followed the patients for a median of 1.6 years, and found that SVT was a marker of occult cancer. The 3-month cancer risk was 8.0% and the SIR was 33 (95% confidence interval, 27-40), compared with the general population. Increased risk was mainly found for liver cancer (risk = 3.5%; SIR = 1805), pancreatic cancer (risk = 1.5%; SIR = 256), and myeloproliferative neoplasms (risk = 0.7%; SIR = 764). The overall SIR remained increased twofold after 1 or more years of follow-up. SVT was also a prognostic factor for survival in patients with liver and pancreatic cancer. The clinical impact may be a more thorough diagnostic work-up in patients presenting with SVT.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark.
authors.forename: Kirstine K
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3624-7999
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Søgaard
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark.
authors.forename: Dóra K
authors.initials: DK
authors.lastname: Farkas
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark.
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pedersen
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark.
authors.forename: Henrik T
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: Sørensen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003718:Denmark / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D019337:Hematologic Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000401:mortality; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000401:mortality; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010190:Pancreatic Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000401:mortality; D011379:Prognosis; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012042:Registries; D012307:Risk Factors; D013152:Splanchnic Circulation; D020246:Venous Thrombosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology