Study finds O+ blood group to be more prevalent with gynecological cancers

A new study published in the journal of BMC Cancer revealed that gynecological cancer (GC) susceptibility and prognosis may be significantly influenced by ABO blood types. The most prevalent blood type among GC patients was O+, whereas ovarian cancer recurrence was associated with the AB blood type

Cervical, endometrial, and ovarian cancers are the most frequent forms of gynecological cancers, which can affect any part of a woman's reproductive system. The ABO blood group system is thought to be one of the key contributing elements to GCs' greater sensitivity among the other risk factors for GCs. Thereby, Syed Sameer Aga and team set out to report on the demographics of GC patients and explore the connection between the ABO blood group system and the population's risk of developing GC.

From 2016 to 2023, the current retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted. According to the standards of the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO), the sample comprised all patients aged greater than 18 who had a blood group record and a confirmed histological or cytological diagnosis. To collect information on demographics, tumor features, comorbidities, side effects, and treatment approaches, a thorough examination of the charts was carried out.

The study comprised a total of 543 female patients in total with the average age being 61.6. In the GC instances, O+ (43.8%), A+ (26%), and B+ (15.5%) were the 3 most prevalent blood groups. The 3 most common comorbidities which impacted the GC patients were dyslipidemia, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension (HTN). ABO BG was shown to be significantly (p < 0.05) associated with serous histology in endometrial cancer.

There was a strong correlation between serous histology and B blood group (p < 0.05) and ABO blood group and fallopian carcinoma. The recurrence rates for ovarian cancer were found to be significantly correlated with the AB blood group (p < 0.05). In the instance of patient-dependent GCs, there was a significant correlation (P<0.05) between mixed GCs and tumor type (carcinoma), vaginal/vulval cancers and TNM stage, ovarian cancers and recurrence, and fallopian tube cancers and adverse events and survival status.

Also, the risk of cervical, endometrial, and ovarian malignancies was determined to be substantial for Type B BG (P < 0.05) based on multinomial analysis between GCs and other confounding factors. Overall, this study showed that the most prevalent blood type in this population was Type O + BG. Additionally, vaginal/valval cancer was the most prevalent cancer among our patients and the rarest.

Source:

Aga, S. S., Khan, M. A., Al Mansour, M., Hasosah, R. M., Alsubaie, L. A., Alfaify, D. A., Alansari, M. B., Almutairi, S. O., & Nissar, S. (2025). Association of blood group types and clinico-pathological features of gynecological cancers (GCs). BMC Cancer, 25(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12885-025-13527-z