High lifetime number of sexual partners linked to increased cancer risk

Feb 18, 2020 by

by Linda Carroll, Reuters:

People who have had 10 or more sexual partners during their lifetime may have increased odds of being diagnosed with cancer, a new study suggests.

Women, in particular, had nearly twice the risk when they had 10 or more past partners compared to when they had one or none, researchers report in BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health.

While the study team expected to find an association between number of sexual partners and cancer, they were surprised to find a gender difference.

“Previous research has shown that specific STIs (sexually transmitted infections) may lead to several cancers,” said study coauthor Lee Smith, a reader at the Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge, UK.

“It is interesting the risk is higher in women when compared to men,” Smith said in an email. “This may be because the link between certain STIs and cancer is stronger in women.”

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