Risk of cervical cancer in women with autoimmune diseases, in relation with their use of immunosuppressants and screening: population-based cohort study.

Abstract

Severely immunosuppressed individuals have a strongly increased risk of cervical cancer. In patients with autoimmune diseases (AID), who have defects in their immune system and receive immunosuppressants, the risk of cervical cancer is less clear. We conducted a cohort study, using Danish nationwide population-based registers including information on AID diagnoses, immunosuppressant intake, cervical screening participation, and cervical cancer incidence. Standardized incidence ratios (SIR) were computed to compare the risk of cervical cancer in AID patients to that of the general population. Hazard ratios (HR) from time-dependent Cox models stratified by AID were used to explore the effect o..