Increased risk of lung cancer in patients with eczema: a nationwide cohort study in Taiwan.
BACKGROUND
The association between lung cancer and eczema remains controversial. Previous studies have yielded conflicting results. This retrospective population-based cohort study is aimed at clarifying the risk of lung cancer associated with eczema.


METHODS
By using the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database, we identified 43,719 patients who had been newly diagnosed with eczema in the years 2000 to 2010. The comparison cohort included 87,438 randomly selected, age-matched patients without eczema. The cases of these two cohorts were followed until 2011. The Cox proportional hazard regression model was used to calculate the risk of lung cancer in eczema patients. The database did not contain any information regarding smoking, alcohol consumption, socioeconomic status, or family history.


RESULTS
After adjusting for age and comorbidity, the population with eczema had a 2.80-fold greater risk of developing lung cancer compared with the population in the comparison cohort (adjusted hazard ratio 2.80, 95 % confidence interval 2.59-3.03). Eczema patients with comorbid diseases including asthma, chronic obstructive -pulmonary disease, alcoholic liver damage, or diabetes were at a higher risk of lung cancer compared with the non-eczema patients without comorbidity.


CONCLUSIONS
Eczema is associated with a greater risk for the development of lung cancer. Further studies with more comprehensive information on potential confounders are warranted.
Department of Dermatology, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
Chao-Kuei
CK
Juan
Department of Dermatology, Taichung Veterans General Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
Jui-Lung
JL
Shen
Management Office for Health Data, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung, Taiwan.
Cheng-Li
CL
Lin
The Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, United States.
Karen Wang
KW
Kim
Graduate Institute of Integrated Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medicine, School of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan. wgchen@mail.cmu.edu.tw.|Research Center for Chinese Medicine & Acupuncture, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan. wgchen@mail.cmu.edu.tw.
Wen-Chi
WC
Chen
D015331:Cohort Studies; D004485:Eczema / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology