Sleep apnea is a serious sleep disorder in which one faces repeatedly start and stop of breathing. The most common form of sleep apnea is Obstructive Sleep Apnea. This type of apnea occurs when the throat muscles immediately relax and block your airway while sleeping. The researchers say that people with sleep apnea have an increased risk of getting cancer than men.
A study has been published in the European Respiratory Journal and is based on analyses of registry data. Greek scientists have analyzed data from 19,000 people and found that women with obstructive sleep apnea are more likely to be diagnosed with lung cancer than men with the same condition.
“It’s reasonable to assume that sleep apnea is a risk factor for cancer or that both conditions have common risk factors, such as overweight. On the other hand, it is less likely that cancer leads to sleep apnea,” said Ludger Grote, Professor at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden.
The study has found that cancer was more prevalent among women with Obstructive Sleep Apnea than men even after considering factors like age, body mass index (BMI), alcohol consumption and smoking status. The participants included 5789 women and 13767 men and they were assessed for their age, BMI and other factors that can impact the risk of developing cancer.
The research team has planned to conduct a follow-up study for the purpose of evaluating the number of cancer diagnoses and cancer deaths among people with OSA. They aim to look at specific cancer in more detail in their follow-up studies.
There may be a link between sleep apnea and lung cancer, predominately in women. A lot more needs to be done to come up at some conclusive results.
The information shared in this blog is for educational purposes only.