Association of baseline c-reactive protein with incident cancer and survival in cancer patients

Abstract

11052 Background: We tested the hypothesis that baseline plasma levels of C-reactive protein (CRP) associate with risk of incident cancer in the general population, and early death in cancer patients. Methods: 10,408 individuals from the Danish general population, who had CRP measured at baseline, were followed for up to 16 years; 1,624 developed cancer and of these, 998 died during follow-up. Follow-up was 100% complete. We excluded individuals with a cancer diagnosis at baseline. Results: Baseline CRP levels >3 vs. <1 mg/L were associated with multifactorially adjusted hazard ratios of 1.3 (95% CI, 1.0–1.6) for cancer of any type, of 2.2 (1.0–4.6) for lung cancer, of 1.9 (0.8–4.6) for colorectal cancer, and of 0.7 (0.4–1.4) for breast cancer. Corresponding hazard ratios for the highest vs. the lowest quintile of baseline CRP levels were 1.3 (1.0–1.6), 2.1 (1.2–3.8), 1.7 (0.8–3.2), and 0.9 (0.5–1.7), respectively. Multifactorially adjusted hazard ratios for early death in cancer patients were 1.8 (1.2–2.7) for CRP >3 vs. <1 mg/L and 1.4 (1.1–1.7) for the highest vs. the lowest quintile. Elevated CRP levels associated with early death in cancer patients with localized disease, but not in cancer patients with metastases (interaction; P=.03). Conclusions: Elevated levels of CRP in cancer-free individuals are associated with increased risk of cancer of any type, of lung cancer, and possibly of colorectal cancer. Moreover, elevated levels of baseline CRP associate with early death after a diagnosis of any cancer, particularly in patients without metastases. No significant financial relationships to disclose.