Schizophrenia and cancer: an epidemiological study
Open accessAbstract
Background: For decades there has been interest in the possibility that people with schizophrenia might have some protection against cancer, and that, if this were so, it might hold clues about aetiological mechanisms in schizophrenia. Aims: To study cancer incidence in schizophrenia. Method: Cohort analysis of linked hospital and death records was used to compare cancer rates in people with schizophrenia with a reference cohort. Results: We did not find a reduced risk for cancer overall (rate ratio 0.99, 95% CI 0.90–1.08) or for most individual cancers. There was, however, a significantly low rate ratio for skin cancer (0.56, 95% CI 0.36–0.83) Conclusions: We found no evidence that schizophrenia confers protection against cancer in general. Low rates of skin cancer are consistent with the hypothesis that sun exposure may influence the development of schizophrenia, although other explanations are also possible.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Other studies found an increased or no different overall risk of cancer in patients with schizophrenia compared to the general population.
“On the other hand, other studies found an increased (9,21,28,(449)(450)(451) or no different (292,419,452,453) overall risk of cancer in patients with schizophrenia compared to the general population.”
From Physical illness in patients with severe mental disorders. I. Prevalence, impact of medications and disparities in health care (2011) · cites this paper as [452]
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
The citation lists haven’t been fetched yet
References 26 · Cited by 123
Research works printed but not linked: 3
- Conditions used in reference cohort, with Office of Population Censuses and Surveys (OPCS, 1975) code edition 3 for
- Conditions used in reference cohort, with Office of Population Censuses and Surveys (OPCS, 1975) code edition 3 for operations and ICD ^9 code for diagnosis (with equivalent codes used for other coding editions): appendicecomy (OPCS operations and ICD ^9 code for diagnosis (with equivalent codes used for other coding editions): appendicecomy (OPCS 3, 441^444; excluded from analysis of colorectal cancer), tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy (230 ^236), knee arthroplasty 3, 441^444; excluded from analysis of colorectal cancer), tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy (230 ^236), knee arthroplasty (812), hip arthroplasty (810, 811), squint (ICD ^9 378), otitis externa, otitis media (380 ^382), haemorrhoids (455; ex- (812), hip arthroplasty (810, 811), squint (ICD ^9 378), otitis externa, otitis media (380 ^382), haemorrhoids (455; ex- cluded from the analyis of colorectal cancer), upper respiratory infections (460 ^466), deflected nasal septum, nasal cluded from the analyis of colorectal cancer), upper respiratory infections (460 ^466), deflected nasal septum, nasal polyp (470 ^471), impacted tooth and other disorders of teeth (520 ^521), inguinal hernia (550; excluded from the polyp (470 ^471), impacted tooth and other disorders of teeth (520 ^521), inguinal hernia (550; excluded from the analysis of colorectal cancer, ingrowing toenail and other diseases of nail (703), sebaceous cyst (706.2), internal analysis of colorectal cancer, ingrowing toenail and other diseases of nail (703), sebaceous cyst (706.2), internal derangement of knee (717), bunion (727.1, selected fractures (810 ^816, 823^826), dislocations, sprains and strains derangement of knee (717), bunion (727.1), selected fractures (810 ^816, 823^826), dislocations, sprains and strains (830 ^839, 840 ^848), superficial injury and confusion (910 ^919, 920 ^924). (830 ^839, 840 ^848), superficial injury and confusion (910 ^919, 920 ^924).
- Adjusted for gender, age in 5-year bands, and time period in single calendar years. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.187.4.334 Published online by Cambridge University Press REFERENCES
- Authors
- Goldacre, M. J., Kurina, L. M., Wotton, C. J., Yeates, D., & Seagroatt, V.
- Affiliations
- University of Oxford (GB)
- University of Chicago (US)
- Corresponding author
- Goldacre, Michael J.
- Venue
- British Journal of Psychiatry
- Publisher
- Royal College of Psychiatrists
- Published
- 2005-10
- Volume
- 187
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 334-338
- ISSN
- 0007-1250 (ISSN-L)
- 1472-1465
- OpenAlex
- W2131683627
- Cited by
- 123
- References
- 26
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 12
- FWCI
- 3.80
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- The British Journal of Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Age UK
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Schizophrenia research and treatment
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Oncology › Global Cancer Incidence and Screening
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Cancer, Stress, Anesthesia, and Immune Response
- Keywords
- schizophrenia, cancer incidence, skin cancer, sun exposure, etiology of schizophrenia, cancer risk
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Humans, Melanoma, Middle Aged, Neoplasms, Risk Factors, Schizophrenia, Skin Neoplasms, Cohort Studies, Incidence, Age of Onset
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
