The study, conducted by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm and published in BMJ Oncology, followed nearly 190,000 adults over 18 years old who were newly diagnosed with anemia between 2011 and 2021. These individuals were matched by age and sex with an equal number of cancer-free controls, according to lead researcher Elinor Nemlander of the Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society. The findings showed that 6.2% of men and 2.8% of women with new-onset anemia were diagnosed with cancer within 18 months, compared with 1.1% of women without anemia.

“Women with anemia of inflammation—defined by ferritin levels above 100 ng/mL combined with elevated C-reactive protein (CRP)—had a 15.3% cancer diagnosis rate within 12 months.”

The risk of cancer was highest within the first three months after anemia detection but remained elevated throughout the entire follow-up period, Nemlander said. The study also found that mortality rates were higher among those with anemia than their matched counterparts without anemia during the 18-month observation window. “The increased risk persists later during follow-up as well,” Nemlander noted, describing anemia as a “strong and sustained risk marker” for both cancer incidence and all-cause mortality.

Subgroup analyses identified specific anemia types associated with markedly increased cancer risk. Women with anemia of inflammation—defined by ferritin levels above 100 ng/mL combined with elevated C-reactive protein (CRP)—had a 15.3% cancer diagnosis rate within 12 months. Men with combined inflammatory iron deficiency anemia, characterized by ferritin below 100 ng/mL and increased CRP, showed an even higher 19.3% cancer diagnosis rate in the same period. Overall, 7.9% of men and 5.2% of women with new-onset anemia received a cancer diagnosis within 12 months across the general cohort.

These inflammatory anemia types were linked to a 10- to 30-fold increase in cancer incidence compared with the general population, with approximately one in six individuals affected receiving a cancer diagnosis within a year, the study reported. Red blood cell size also emerged as a significant predictor of cancer risk and type. Individuals with microcytosis—small red blood cells as measured by mean corpuscular volume (MCV)—had particularly elevated risks for gastrointestinal and hematopoietic cancers. Conversely, macrocytosis, or enlarged red blood cells, was more strongly associated with increased mortality but not with cancer risk to the same extent.

The researchers concluded that anemia detected in routine healthcare settings is likely a sign of underlying disease rather than a standalone condition. They emphasized the importance of recognizing new-onset anemia as a potential marker for cancer, highlighting that the interval between first symptoms and cancer diagnosis can critically affect patient prognosis. Nemlander and colleagues called for increased awareness and improved clinical pathways for managing anemia in general practice to facilitate timely cancer detection.

The Stockholm Early Detection of Cancer Study, also known as STEADY-CAN, utilized comprehensive register data covering almost the entire adult population of Stockholm County. Its findings align with several international studies, including a 2022 Danish registry analysis, a 2015 Taiwanese investigation of iron deficiency anemia patients, and a 2021 South Korean study examining anemia defined by serum hemoglobin levels. These independent studies have similarly reported an association between new-onset anemia and elevated cancer risk.

Karolinska Institutet officials stated that the research may help guide clinical follow-up of patients with anemia in routine care. The study’s extensive population-based design and corroboration by international data provide robust evidence of the link between anemia and subsequent cancer diagnosis. Further research is needed to refine diagnostic and management strategies for anemia detected outside specialized oncology settings.

The study analyzed data from 85,394 participants in the UK Biobank, with a median age of 63 years, who wore wrist-based accelerometers for one week to objectively measure daily physical activity, including total movement, intensity, and step counts, according to researchers from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the University of Oxford. Over an average follow-up period of 5.8 years, during which 2,633 participants developed cancer, the researchers found that those in the highest category of total daily physical activity had a 26% lower risk of developing 13 types of cancer compared to those with the lowest activity levels, the study published March 26, 2025, in the British Journal of Sports Medicine reported.

Those in the highest category of total daily physical activity had a 26% lower risk of developing 13 types of cancer compared to those with the lowest activity levels, the study published March 26, 2025, in the British Journal of Sports Medicine reported.

The 13 cancer types examined included breast and colorectal cancers, which have been previously linked to physical activity, according to the study titled “Amount and intensity of daily total physical activity, step count and risk of incident cancer in the UK Biobank.” The researchers used Cox regression models adjusted for demographic factors, lifestyle behaviors, body mass index (BMI), and other health conditions to isolate the association between activity levels and cancer risk, the paper stated.

The findings showed that both light-intensity and moderate-to-vigorous physical activities were associated with reduced cancer risk, officials said. Light-intensity activity, such as casual walking, was linked to lower risk, and replacing sedentary time with any level of physical activity contributed to the observed benefits. Sedentary behavior by itself was not directly associated with cancer risk, the study noted.

Step count was also a significant factor. Participants taking approximately 7,000 steps per day had an 11% lower cancer risk compared to those averaging 5,000 steps, while those reaching about 9,000 steps per day experienced a 16% lower risk, according to the researchers. The risk reduction plateaued at around 9,000 steps, and step pace or intensity was not linked to cancer risk, suggesting that walking at any pace may confer protective effects, the study authors said.

The study’s use of wrist-worn accelerometers provided objective and precise measurements of physical activity, addressing limitations of prior research that relied on self-reported data, which can be subject to recall bias and inaccuracies, according to the authors. This prospective cohort study leveraged data from the UK Biobank accelerometer substudy, which included detailed activity tracking and health records.

Researchers emphasized that the results support current national and international physical activity guidelines, which recommend increasing daily movement for cancer prevention. “Our findings support the idea that simple low-intensity activities such as walking are associated with a lower risk of developing cancer,” the study said. The data suggest that individuals who are less active could benefit from increasing their daily step count to between 7,000 and 9,000 steps.

The study’s comprehensive adjustments for confounding factors, including BMI and lifestyle variables, and its focus on 13 specific cancer types, provide robust evidence linking physical activity to reduced cancer risk, according to the research team. The average follow-up of nearly six years allowed for sufficient time to observe incident cancer cases among participants.

The research builds on previous studies by incorporating objective accelerometer data rather than relying solely on questionnaires, thereby enhancing the accuracy of physical activity assessment. This approach fills gaps in earlier research that often used self-reported measures or BMI as proxies for activity, which can obscure the relationship between exercise and cancer outcomes.

The UK Biobank is a large, ongoing biomedical database and research resource containing in-depth genetic and health information from half a million UK participants. The accelerometer substudy provided detailed physical activity data that has been used in various epidemiological investigations, including this one.

The study’s implications extend to public health strategies aimed at cancer prevention through lifestyle modification. While the researchers did not establish causality, their findings add to the evidence base supporting physical activity as a modifiable factor associated with lower cancer incidence.

Future research may explore the biological mechanisms underlying the association between physical activity and reduced cancer risk, as well as investigate the potential benefits of different activity patterns across diverse populations. The authors noted that their findings reinforce the importance of promoting physical activity in middle-aged and older adults to potentially reduce cancer burden.