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Study Finds Tattoos May Be Linked to Higher Risk of Cancer

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Study Finds Tattoos May Be Linked to Higher Risk of Cancer

  • People with tattoos may be at a higher risk of developing malignant lymphoma, new research finds.
  • Researchers discovered that the risk of developing lymphoma, a type of cancer, was 21% higher among those who had tattoos.
  • Experts explain the findings.

You may want to think twice before getting inked. New research shows that people with tattoos may be at a higher risk of developing cancer than those without permanent body art.

A study published in eClinicalMedicine looked into long-term health effects of tattoos. More specifically, the association between tattoos and lymphoma, a type of blood cancer. Researchers analyzed 1,398 participants with lymphoma and 4,193 participants without a lymphoma diagnosis, between ages 20 and 60. All participants answered a lifestyle questionnaire about tattoos. In the group with lymphoma, 21% had tattoos, while 18% had tattoos in the group without a lymphoma diagnosis.

The study found that the risk of developing lymphoma was 21% higher among those who had tattoos. Researchers discovered that the risk of lymphoma was highest in individuals who had their first tattoo less than two years prior to diagnosis. However, causality cannot be conferred from this single study, and more research is needed to establish a definitive link between tattoos and lymphoma risk, says Wael Harb, M.D., board-certified hematologist and medical oncologist at MemorialCare Cancer Institute.

“It is important to remember that lymphoma is a rare disease and that our results apply at the group level. The results now need to be verified and investigated further in other studies and such research is ongoing,” Christel Nielsen, lead author and researcher from Lund University, said in a statement.

Most people get their first tattoo at a young age, which means that you are exposed to tattoo ink for a large part of your life. Even so, research has only scratched the surface of the long-term health effects of tattoos.

When tattoo ink is injected into the skin, the body interprets this as something foreign that should not be there, and the immune system is activated, Nielsen continued in the statement. “A large part of the ink is transported away from the skin, to the lymph nodes where it is deposited,” which can cause metal toxicity and lead to various diseases, organ failures, and other adverse effects.

Interestingly, researchers found no evidence of an increased risk of cancer with larger-sized tattoos, despite this correlating, in theory, to the amount of ink used. “We do not yet know why this was the case,” said Nielsen. “One can only speculate that a tattoo, regardless of size, triggers a low-grade inflammation in the body, which in turn can trigger cancer.” So, the link between tattoo ink and cancer risk is more complex than the researchers initially thought.

Researchers did not mention if different types of ink, colors, and the number of tattoos on a person impacted lymphoma risk. The study did adjust, however, for several lifestyle factors, including smoking and socioeconomic status, in its analysis, notes Dr. Harb. “While tattoos themselves were found to be a risk factor for lymphoma, the lifestyle factors associated with individuals who get tattoos (e.g., smoking, substance use) could also contribute to the increased risk.”

The bottom line

It’s important to note that the study focused primarily on malignant lymphoma and its subtypes and did not find evidence of an increased risk for other types of cancers specifically linked to tattoos, says Dr. Harb. “However, it did highlight concerns about the presence of carcinogenic chemicals in tattoo inks, suggesting that further research is needed to explore potential links to other cancers,” he adds.

Dr. Harb continues to point out that future studies should look into the long-term health effects of tattoo inks, the potential carcinogenic effects of specific chemicals found in tattoo inks, and the potential links between infections from tattooing (such as hepatitis from non-sterile tattoo needle practices) and cancer risk.

Madeleine, Prevention’s assistant editor, has a history with health writing from her experience as an editorial assistant at WebMD, and from her personal research at university. She graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in biopsychology, cognition, and neuroscience—and she helps strategize for success across Prevention’s social media platforms. 

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