Twenty -seven species of bacteria and fungi, among the hundreds living in people’s mouths, are associated with three and a half times a greater risk of developing pancreatic cancer, as a study published online in Jama Oncology.

It has already been observed that those who have poor oral health are more vulnerable to pancreatic cancer than those who have a healthier mouth and a possible mechanism that could explain this connection is that the bacteria can travel through the saliva to the pancreas, an organ that helps digestion. In the present study, the focus of the search for species that can contribute to the condition was focused.

The researchers, led by Nyu Langone Health and the American Cancer Center Perlmutter, evaluated the genetic composition of germs collected from the saliva of 122,000 healthy men and women. They then attended the participants for average for nine years. They found that mainly Candida oral fungi can play a role in pancreatic cancer. A total of 24 species of bacteria and fungi were associated with the risk of pancreatic cancer, while three other types of cancer bacteria were already known to contribute to periodontal disease.

Scientists then developed a tool that could, by evaluating the synthesis of oral microbioma, assess the risk of cancer.

The same research team revealed a year ago a connection between certain mouth bacteria with an increased risk of developing squamous cancer and cervical cancer.