Purpose: Specific oral health conditions may be risk factors for breast cancer. This study aimed to investigate the associations of oral health conditions with breast cancer risk.
Methods: A total of 234,363 women from the UK Biobank prospective cohort were included in this study. We examined the association of self-reported painful/bleeding gums, loose teeth, mouth ulcers, toothache, and use of dentures with the risk of breast cancer. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) for the associations were calculated with adjustment for multiple confounders.
Results: No associations of self-reported painful/bleeding gums (HR = 1.04, 95% CI 0.98-1.10), loose teeth (HR = 0.92, 95% CI 0.82-1.02), mouth ulcers (HR = 0.99, 95% CI 0.93-1.06), toothache (HR = 1.03, 95% CI 0.92-1.14), or denture use (HR = 0.96, 95% CI 0.91-1.02) with breast cancer risk were found. No statistical heterogeneity was observed in analyses stratified by baseline smoking and menopausal status.
Conclusion: We observed no association between self-reported oral health conditions with the risk of breast cancer. Additional research with clinical examinations or oral health biomarkers in diverse populations is warranted.
Keywords: Breast cancer; Loose teeth; Mouth ulcers; Periodontal disease; Toothache.
© 2023. This is a U.S. Government work and not under copyright protection in the US; foreign copyright protection may apply.