Transgender individuals' cancer survivorship: Results of a cross‐sectional study. Issue 12 (5th March 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Boehmer, Ulrike; Gereige, Jessica; Winter, Michael; Ozonoff, Al; Scout, Nfn
• Is Part Of: Cancer. Volume 126:Issue 12(2020)
• Page Start: 2829
• Page End: 2836
• Publication Date: 2020-03-05
• Subjects: cancer prevalence -- cancer survivorship -- comorbidities -- disparities -- gender minority -- risk behaviors -- transgender; Cancer -- Periodicals; Cancer -- Cytopathology -- Periodicals; 616.99405
• DOI: 10.1002/cncr.32784
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0008-543X

Abstract

Abstract : Background: Transgender individuals' cancer prevalence and transgender cancer survivors' health needs have received scarce attention. The current study compared transgender and cisgender individuals' cancer prevalence and described the health needs of transgender cancer survivors. Methods: The authors used Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System data on 95, 800 cisgender and transgender individuals who self‐reported a cancer diagnosis. Using multiple logistic regression, they estimated cancer prevalence and calculated odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals of physical, psychological, overall health, and health behaviors of transgender survivors compared with cisgender survivors. Results: After adjusting for confounders, transgender men had a significantly higher (>2‐fold) number of cancer diagnoses compared with cisgender men, but not cisgender women. Cancer prevalence among gender nonconforming individuals and transgender women was not significantly different from that of cisgender men and cisgender women. Gender nonconforming survivors had significantly greater physical inactivity, heavy episodic alcohol use, and depression compared with cisgender men and cisgender women. Transgender men survivors were significantly more likely to report poor physical health and greater medical comorbidities and were less likely to report smoking compared with cisgender men and cisgender women. Transgender women survivors were significantly more likely to report diabetes compared with cisgender men and cisgender women and were more likely to report cardiovascular disease compared with cisgender women. Conclusions: Clinicians should be aware of the higher prevalence of cancer among transgender men and a potential survivorship bias among transgender individuals. Transgender survivors have considerable variation in their risk profile. Clinicians and health services can target gender nonconforming survivors' depression and health behaviors to improve survival and should address the complex comorbidities of transgender men and transgender women. Abstract : The current study examines cancer prevalence and demonstrates that only transgender men have a higher cancer prevalence than cisgender men, whereas cancer prevalence among other transgender individuals appears to be similar to that of their cisgender counterparts. Diverse transgender individuals with cancer have a varied health risk profile, with transgender men and transgender women demonstrating higher rates of medical comorbidities compared with cisgender survivors, and gender nonconforming survivors demonstrating poorer health behaviors and higher rates of depression compared with cisgender survivors.