Incident Early- and Later-Onset Type 2 Diabetes and Risk of Early- and Later-Onset Cancer: Prospective Cohort Study.

The relationship between incident early- and later-onset type 2 diabetes and risk of early- and later-onset cancer is unclear. We investigated this topic based on 228,073 U.S. women and up to 38 years of follow-up. Our findings suggested that incident early-onset type 2 diabetes was associated with increased risk of early-onset total cancer, and diabetes- and obesity-related cancer, especially in those with higher BMI at age 18 years. Cancer prevention efforts tailored for patients with early-onset type 2 diabetes may need to focus on those with higher adolescent or emerging adulthood BMI. The impact of early-onset type 2 diabetes on cancer risk may be inherently stronger than that of later-onset type 2 diabetes.