Incidence of malignant neoplasms and mortality in people affected by multiple sclerosis in the epoch of disease-modifying treatments: A population-based study on Tuscan residents.

Background: Conflicting data are currently available on the risk of malignancies in people affected by multiple sclerosis (pwMS), and the potential relative contribution to this risk of disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) is still debated. Moreover, data on the long-term prognosis of pwMS mostly derive from natural history studies and updated observations during the treatment era are lacking.

Methods: Incidence of cancer and mortality were analysed in a pwMS cohort of residents of Tuscany over a 17-year period of observation during the treatment era and compared with the rates observed in a 1:10 sex- and age-matched control population resident in the same geographical area.