Cancer mortality in patients with schizophrenia: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Abstract

<b>Background</b>Previous studies have reported conflicting results on the association between schizophrenia and cancer mortality.<b>Aims</b>To summarise available evidence and quantify the association between schizophrenia and cancer mortality using meta-analysis.<b>Method</b>We systematically searched literature in the PubMed and Embase databases. Risk estimates and 95% confidence intervals reported in individual studies were pooled using the DerSimonian-Laird random-effects model.<b>Results</b>We included 19 studies in the meta-analysis. Among them, 15 studies reported standardised mortality ratios (SMRs) comparing patients with schizophrenia with the general population, and the pooled SMR was 1.40 (95% CI 1.29-1.52, <i>P</i> < 0.001). The other four studies reported hazard ratios (HRs) comparing individuals with schizophrenia with those without schizophrenia; the pooled HR was 1.51 (95% CI 1.13-2.03, <i>P</i> = 0.006).<b>Conclusions</b>Patients with schizophrenia are at a significantly increased risk of cancer mortality compared with the general population or individuals without schizophrenia.