Blood type and risk of pancreatic cancer linked

Using data from two large groups of people, Brian Wolpin, of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, and colleagues report finding what seems to be an association between blood types and risk of pancreatic cancer.

The study is published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

The researchers examined data from 107 503 people who participated in either the Nurses' Health Study or the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. The study started in 1996, and after an average follow-up period of nearly nine years, 316 study participants developed pancreatic cancer.

The researchers found that the age-adjusted incidence rate of pancreatic cancer for people with blood type O was significantly less than for individuals with A, AB, or B blood types.

Compared to participants with type O blood, those with type A blood were 32% more likely to develop pancreatic cancer. Those with type AB blood were 51% more likely, and those with type B were 72% more likely. These findings took into account known risk factors for pancreatic cancer such as age, obesity, smoking status, and family history of pancreatic cancer in a first-degree relative.