Mortality and cancer incidence in patients with Parkinson's disease

To investigate the risks of mortality and cancer incidence in Parkinson's disease (PD) we studied the prognosis of 246 PD patients in a community. The cohort of PD patients was identified in 1984, and survival, mortality, relocation, and cancer incidence during 1984-1992 were examined retrospectively in 1994. The risk was measured by a standard effect estimate, i. e., the standardized mortality ratio (SMR) or the standardized incidence ratio (SIR), compared with the rates in the general population. During the observation period 696 person-years in PD men and 1018 person-years in PD women were accumulated, and 49 PD men and 53 PD women died. The risk of mortality in PD was significantly increased in both sexes (SMR: men 1.74, women 1.97). In addition, the risk of cancer incidence was evaluated in 228 patients aged under 80 years; 8 PD men and 7 PD women developed cancer. The risk of overall cancer incidence in PD was less than 1 in either sex, but not significantly. The risk of breast cancer in PD women was significantly increased (SIR: 5.49), but the 95% confidence interval was wide (1.10-16.03). The results indicate that PD patients in a community have a twofold higher risk of mortality, and that PD may be associated with an increased risk of breast cancer in women.