Association of age at pancreatic cancer diagnosis with smoking and drinking: A hospital‐based and meta‐analysis study

Abstract Recent trends show an alarming rise in pancreatic cancer prevalence among young individuals. Previous studies have presented differences in age at diagnosis. The study aimed to examine the likelihood of a younger age at diagnosis in individuals exposed to known risk factors, compared with those without exposure. We conducted a retrospective cohort analysis of hospitalized patients in Taiwan. The Kaplan–Meier method and a Cox proportional hazards model were used to evaluate survival probabilities and diagnosis risk, respectively. We then performed a systematic review and meta‐analysis to examine the association of the risk of early‐diagnosis pancreatic cancer with smoking and alcohol drinking across different countries. In the cohort of 121 patients with pancreatic cancer, smokers and drinkers were diagnosed at 5.8 and 5.9 years younger than non‐smokers and non‐drinkers, respectively, while those who both smoked and drank were diagnosed 9.7 years earlier. Survival analysis confirmed these findings after adjusting for covariates (smokers: hazard ratio [HR] = 1.75, p = .019; drinkers: HR = 1.78, p = .023), with patients who both smoked and drank having a substantially higher risk of earlier diagnosis (HR = 3.66, 95% confidence interval = 1.97–6.81, p < .001). Meta‐analysis revealed that early smoking initiation (<20 years) was linked to a higher risk of pancreatic cancer (pooled HR = 1.46) compared with late initiation (≥20 years) (pooled HR = 1.39), consistent across various stratifications. Cigarette smoking and alcohol drinking are linked to younger age at pancreatic cancer diagnosis, with early smoking initiation increasing this risk further. These findings underscore the need for targeted interventions to reduce smoking and excessive alcohol drinking to delay the onset and reduce the incidence of pancreatic cancer, highlighting the importance of early preventive measures.