Significant association between hypolipoproteinemia(a) and lifetime risk of cancer: An autopsy study from a community-based Geriatric Hospital

AbstractBackground cent study showed that a low lipoproteinemia(a) [Lp(a)] level was a risk factor for cancer and all-cause deaths. The purpose of this study was to verify the role of the Lp(a) level on cancer among consecutive autopsy cases. s bjects consisted of 1354 cases (775 men and 579 women). The average age at death was 79.9 years. Hypolipoproteinemia(a) was defined as an Lp(a) level of below 80 mg/L. Overall, 62.3% of the subjects had suffered from at least one to a maximum of five malignancies throughout their lives. The most frequent type of malignancy was gastric cancer, followed by leukemia, lung cancer, and colon cancer. s ncer-bearing status decreased linearly according to the Lp(a) level in both men and women (P = 0.01 and P < 0.001, respectively). The median Lp(a) level was significantly lower among the cases with hepato-biliary–pancreatic cancers or hematopoietic malignancy, but was higher among cases with lung cancer, especially lung adenocarcinoma. Hypolipoproteinemia(a) was a significant risk factor for any origins of cancer, with an odds ratio of 1.94 (95% CI, 1.45–2.60; P < 0.001). It was also a risk factor for hepato-biliary cancers and leukemia, but it was a protective factor for lung cancer. sions ndings suggested hypolipoproteinemia(a) would be a significant risk factor for cancer except lung cancer. This study complements our previous study showing that hypolipoproteinemia(a) would increase the lifetime risk of cancer other than lung cancer.