D'Arcy M, et al. - In this case-control study, researchers examined how allergic rhinitis, asthma, and eczema correlated with cancer risk among elderly Americans by analyzing Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)-Medicare linked data. Subjects with first cancer diagnosed in SEER registries between 1992-2013 (ages 66-99; N=1,744,575) were included as cases and controls who were cancer-free (N=100,000) were selected randomly from Medicare, matched on sex, age and selection year. Using Medicare claims, allergic conditions were identified. For cancers of the hypopharynx, esophagus (squamous cell), cervix, tonsil/oropharynx, and vagina/vulva, strong inverse correlations were observed with allergic rhinitis. For cancers of the esophagus (adenocarcinoma), stomach, colon, rectosigmoid/rectum, liver, gallbladder, lung, uterus, bladder, and miscellaneous sites, lesser but still significant inverse correlations were observed. Reduced risk of liver cancer was noted in association with asthma, while eczema was related to higher risk of T-cell lymphoma.