Prevalence of Type 2 Diabetes among Oral Cancer Patients in a Voluntary Charitable Cancer Care Center in South India

Abstract Introduction: Limited research has explored the association between type 2 diabetes (T2D) and oral cancer (OC) in the Indian population. This study was undertaken to investigate the prevalence of T2D among individuals with OC in South India. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 701 individuals aged ≥18 years with a first-time diagnosis of OC at a cancer center in urban south India. Those with recurrent OC were excluded. Demographic and clinical information on tobacco use, OC site, clinical tumor, node and metastasis staging, anthropometry, blood pressure, glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and fasting plasma glucose (FPG) was obtained. T2D was diagnosed if FPG ≥126 mg/dL and/or HbA1c ≥6.5% or patient was on anti-hyperglycemic medications with or without insulin. Results: The mean age of participants was 53 years (95% confidence interval [CI]: 52–54), and 70.8% (95%CI: 67.3, 74.0) were male. The prevalence of T2D and impaired fasting glucose (IFG) [100- <126 mg/dL] among individuals with OC was 29.2% (95%CI: 25.8–32.6) and 16.7% (95%CI: 14–19.7), respectively (dysglycemia [IFG+T2D]: 45.9%, 95%CI: 42.2–49.6). FPG and HbA1c were significantly higher among those with OC and T2D ( n = 205) compared to the OC-only group ( n = 496) ( P < 0.001). Hypertension and family history of diabetes were more prevalent in the OC with T2D group ( P < 0.001), while tobacco use was lower in this group ( P = 0.030). Body mass index (BMI) was positively associated with T2D in individuals with OC even after adjusting for age, sex, and tobacco use ( P = 0.004, odds ratio [OR] = 1.06, 95%CI-1.0–1.1), as was hypertension ( P < 0.001, OR = 2.09, 95%CI-1.5–3.0) and family history of T2D ( P < 0.001, OR = 2.15, 95%CI-1.5–3.2). Conclusion: Nearly one-third of the study population with OC had T2D, and one sixth had IFG. High BMI, hypertension, and family history of diabetes are likely risk factors associated with T2D among those with OC.