Controlling risk factors reduces cancer risk in patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease: A Cohort Study

Background: The association of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) on with cancer occurrence are not well examined, and the impact of common risk factors control on the risk of cancer in ASCVD patients has not been known. Objectives: This study aimed to explore the effect and possible causes of ASCVD on cancer risk through a cohort study. Methods: A total of 14,665 age- and sex-matched pairs of participants were recruited from the Kailuan cohort (ASCVD v.s. non-ASCVD). A competing risk model was used to calculate the risk of cancer after ASCVD. Results: A total of 1,124 cancers occurred after 5.80 (3.05, 9.44) years of follow-up. The ASCVD group had a reduced risk of cancer (HR: 0.74; 95%CI: 0.65-0.85). Also, the risk of cancer in the digestive system, respiratory system, urinary system and reproductive system was reduced by 17%, 16%, 14% and 52%. According to the status of SBP and DBP, FBG, hs-CRP and BMI after ASCVD, the risk of overall cancer and digestive system cancer decreased with the increase of the number of ideal indicators (P for trend< 0.01). With the increase of follow-up time, the risk of cancer and the five site-specific cancers gradually decreased. Conclusions: Cancer risk can be reduced by controlling for common risk factors after ASCVD event. This risk reduction is site-specific-, time-, and the number of ideal indicator-dependent.