Pancreatic Cancer Risk in Prediabetes: A Systematic Meta-Analysis Approach

ABSTRACT Objectives Pancreatic cancer and Prediabetes pose significant public health challenges. Given the lack of strong evidence and inconsistencies, we performed a meta-analysis to assess the risk of pancreatic cancer in prediabetes. Methods We performed a thorough search of the major databases over the last 10 years to identify relevant articles. The Pooled odds ratio(OR) and Hazard Ratio(HR) were combined to calculate the effect size(ES). Results We analyzed 5 studies including 5,425,111 prediabetic individuals and 16,096,467 normoglycemic population across five countries with a median follow-up of 8.5 years. We identified a noteworthy association between prediabetes and pancreatic cancer, reporting an unadjusted effect size (ES) of 1.36 (95% CI 1.05–1.77, P = 0.02) and an adjusted ES of 1.40 (1.23–1.59, P < 0.01). Subgroup analyses by age revealed variations in risk, with studies involving participants aged 60 and above exhibiting a higher effect size (ES 1.83, 95% CI 1.28–2.62, P < 0.01). Geographical differences were also observed, with Japanese studies reporting a higher risk (ES 1.89, 95% CI 1.15–3.10, P < 0.01) compared to those from the USA (ES 1.32, 95% CI 1.13–1.53, P < 0.01). Conclusion We identified 40% higher risk of pancreatic cancer in patients with prediabetes than those with normal blood glucose necessitating urgent attention for further research and policy change.