Commentary
The spectrum that ranges from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) to the more aggressive form of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) all the way to liver cirrhosis is associated with complications and hepatocellular carcinoma. Extrahepatic malignancies are among the leading causes of death in patients with NAFLD, but little is known about the specific types of cancer affecting this group of patients. In this study, Y. Huber et al. (University Medical Center Mainz, Germany) aimed to investigate the significance of NAFLD for the incidence of various kinds of cancer. They developed a retrospective, observational analysis in Germany.
The incidence of cancer was 1.5 times higher in patients with NAFLD than in the matched control cohort. Especially breast cancer, tumours of the male genital organs, and skin cancer occurred more often in patients with NAFLD during the 10-year observation period.
According to the authors’ conclusion, the data from their analysis show that the NAFLD population exhibits a slightly increased risk of cancer. The identification of patients with NAFLD can help to identify patients who have an increased risk of cancer.
