Jump to content
This site uses cookies. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. More Info... ×
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.




  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):



    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):


  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Record is Archived

    This article is now archived and is closed to further replies.

    Jefferson Adams
    Jefferson Adams

    No Higher Cancer Risk for Silent Celiac Disease

    Reviewed and edited by a celiac disease expert.

    Celiac.com 05/13/2009 - People with silent celiac disease, those who test positive for celiac disease antibodies, yet show no clinical signs of the disease itself, do not face a higher risk for developing malignant cancers, according to results of a recent Finnish study.

    Previous studies done in the 1970s and 1980s indicated that patients with clinically recognized celiac disease face a higher risk for developing malignancies, Dr. Katri Kaukinen, of the University of Tampere, Finland, told reporters from Reuters Health. However, she explained, "it has not been known whether apparently clinically silent unrecognized cases also carry an increased risk of celiac disease-related complications, and thus whether the healthcare system should recognize and treat."

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A12):
    In an effort to answer that question, Dr. Kaukinen led team of researchers in assessing whether adults with previously unrecognized screening-identified evidence of celiac disease have an increased risk of malignancies.

    Recent screening figures put the prevalence of celiac disease somewhere between 1% and 2% of the population, which means from 7 to 14 million Europeans with gluten intolerance. 75% to 90% of all the celiac disease remains undiagnosed due to absent or atypical symptoms.

    The team examined data from a Finnish population-based adult-representative cohort of 8000 subjects compiled from 1978 to 1980. In 2001, the researchers screened blood samples of people with no history of celiac disease or any malignancy (n = 6849) for immunoglobulin A (IgA) class tissue transglutaminase antibodies. They further screened
    positive samples for IgA class tissue transglutaminase antibodies (Celikey tTG) and for IgA endomysial antibodies (EMA).

    The team analyzed a total of 6849 blood samples. 565 samples showed positive Eu-tTG results. 202 of these subjects showed positive Celikey tTG results ((2.9%) while 73 showed positive EMA screens (1.1%).

    Just over 10% of the study subjects, a total of 694 participants, developed malignancies during the period of the study. Overall malignancy risk was no higher for celiac autoantibody-positive subjects. Adjusted for age and sex, the results showed that the relative risks were 0.91 for those who were Celikey tTG positive, and 0.67 and for those who were EMA positive.

    According to Dr. Kaukinen, the results seem to support the current clinical approach, and suggests that "earlier diagnosis of the disease through serological mass screening would not be beneficial in improving the prognosis of celiac disease as regards malignancies."

    However, before completely ruling out mass screening, Dr Kaukinen noted that it is important to pursue "further prognostic studies [on] mortality and fractures among earlier unrecognized celiac disease cases," as "[t]hese issues should be also addressed" before any official decisions are made regarding the use of mass blood screening for celiac disease.


    Open Original Shared Link.



    User Feedback

    Recommended Comments

    Guest Andrés

    Posted

    So is there a higher risk of cancer if we don't follow the gluten-free diet or not? I wouldn't mind getting the occasional diarrhea abdominal pains if I could lead a normal life again.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Guest Nancy

    Posted

    My celiac was found by my doctor investigating liver disease. I didn't have IBS until I started the gluten-free diet 6 months ago. If there's no risk of cancer, why am I on this horrible diet? My favorite foods are pasta and bread and I don't like the substitutes made with corn.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Guest claire

    "No higher risk for silent disease" is not through any more! There was a new research about risk of mortality for silent disease and silent disease got the highest risk.

    Gluten sensitivity raises death risk (75% more), it is half for celiac (33% more); it is once again the proof that gluten is toxic and we just start to understand how much with research like this one. In France, I fight to obtain less gluten for everyone in food from agro-business but there is even more gluten in American food and I don't know if American celiacs act to make this danger well known by every consumer?

    Friendly yours!

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites


    Guest
    This is now closed for further comments

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Donate
  • About Me

    Jefferson Adams

    Jefferson Adams is Celiac.com's senior writer and Digital Content Director. He earned his B.A. and M.F.A. at Arizona State University. His articles, essays, poems, stories and book reviews have appeared in numerous magazines, journals, and websites, including North American Project, Antioch Review, Caliban, Mississippi Review, Slate, and more. He is the author of more than 2,500 articles on celiac disease. His university coursework includes studies in science, scientific methodology, biology, anatomy, physiology, medicine, logic, and advanced research. He previously devised health and medical content for Colgate, Dove, Pfizer, Sharecare, Walgreens, and more. Jefferson has spoken about celiac disease to the media, including an appearance on the KQED radio show Forum, and is the editor of numerous books, including "Cereal Killers" by Scott Adams and Ron Hoggan, Ed.D.

    >VIEW ALL ARTICLES BY JEFFERSON ADAMS

     


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):





    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):




  • Related Articles

    Scott Adams
    Am J Med. 2003 Aug 15;115(3):191-5
    Celiac.com 09/03/2003 - The results of a study conducted by Dr. Peter Green and colleagues at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York City indicate that, despite a gluten-free diet, people with celiac disease still have an elevated risk of getting non-Hodgkins lymphoma. The good news is that the risk of getting other types of cancers like small intestinal adenocarcinoma, esophageal cancer and melanoma were reduced in patients who adhered to a gluten-free diet, as was the overall risk of getting non-Hodgkins lymphoma. The study looked at 381 celiac disease patients, out of which 43 were diagnosed with cancer (11%). The vast majority—34—were diagnosed at or before their celiac disease diagnoses, so it is safe to say that they were not...


    Jefferson Adams
    Celiac.com 08/14/2007 - It has long been documented that there is a connection between celiac disease and neoplasm. In fact, in the 1960s, a population-based study reported a 100-fold increase in risk of non-Hodgkins lymphoma in patients with celiac disease.
    It has also been shown that people with celiac disease are at greater risk for developing small bowel adenocarcinoma. Also, studies have shown an increased mortality rate from cancer among celiac patients, and there is mounting, but not conclusive evidence that a gluten-free diet provides a measure of protection against the development of malignancies. Strangely, several studies have documented a lower risk of breast cancer among celiac patients.
    However, to date, very little is known about the associated factors, particularly...


    Jefferson Adams
    Celiac Disease Carries No Higher Risk of Colorectal Cancer
    Celiac.com 02/28/2011 - Celiac disease is associated with an increased risk of lymphoma and small bowel malignancy. Colorectal cancer is the most common gastrointestinal cancers in the United States, but most studies have not found no higher rates of colorectal cancer for people with celiac disease, compared with rates in the general population.
    The results of these studies might in fact be describing a true null relationship between celiac disease and colorectal cancers. However, the results may also be influenced by better health-care among patients with known celiac disease, particularly among those with gastroenterologists who are likely to perform screening colonoscopy.
    Because colonoscopy can decrease the incidence of colorectal cancer via removal of precancerous adenomas during...


    Jefferson Adams
    Celiac.com 01/18/2012 - A number of small studies have shown a connection between celiac disease and various gastrointestinal (GI) cancers, but the results haven't been corroborated by larger studies, or by blood and biopsy analysis of large populations. That means that researchers just haven't been able to say with certainty what the results of those smaller studies might mean about cancer risks for the larger population.
    Recently, a clinical team set out to assess GI cancer risks for a larger population. The study team included Peter Elfström, Fredrik Granath, Weimin Ye, and Jonas F. Ludvigsson. They assessed risk GI cancers by using data from large groups of patients with either celiac disease, inflammation, or latent celiac disease.
    They assessed data from 28,882 patients with ...


  • Recent Activity

    1. - Kathleen JJ replied to Kathleen JJ's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      3

      Options - 7 year old boy - Helicobacter pylori and serology

    2. - StaciField replied to StaciField's topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      6

      My bone structure is disintegrating and I’m having to have my teeth removed

    3. - Kathleen JJ replied to Kathleen JJ's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      3

      Options - 7 year old boy - Helicobacter pylori and serology

    4. - cristiana replied to Kathleen JJ's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      3

      Options - 7 year old boy - Helicobacter pylori and serology

    5. - Kathleen JJ posted a topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      3

      Options - 7 year old boy - Helicobacter pylori and serology


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):



  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      126,059
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    Deb W
    Newest Member
    Deb W
    Joined

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):


  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      120.9k
    • Total Posts
      69.1k

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):





  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):



  • Popular Now

    • Captain173
      10
    • jjiillee
      5
    • Kristina12
      7
    • StaciField
    • ShRa
      9
  • Popular Articles

    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
  • Upcoming Events

×
×
  • Create New...