ALL prostate cancer patients are at increased risk for blood clots!
Posted Apr 14 2010 12:00am
A new epidemiological study from Sweden has suggested that all prostate cancer patients may be at slightly increased risk for thromboembolism (blood clots) compared to men in the general population, but the risk is greatest for men receiving hormone therapies.
Van Hemelrijck et al. , in an article published today in Lancet Oncology, used the PCBaSe Sweden database (a database that gathers information on more than 95 percent of all Swedish cases of prostate cancer) to investigate the risk of thromboembolic disease in men with prostate cancer who were receiving endocrine treatment, curative treatment, or some form of surveillance.
They calculated what are known as standardized incidence ratios (SIR) for deep-venous thrombosis (DVT), pulmonary embolism (blood clots in the lungs), and arterial embolism (blood clots in arteries) for patients in the PCBaSe Sweden database and compared these to the expected rates of the same conditions in the total Swedish male population.
The basic results of their analysis were as follows:
The study included all men treated for prostate cancer between January 1, 1997, and December 31, 2007.
1,881 patients developed a thromboembolic disease.
For men on endocrine therapy, compared to men without prostate cancer
For men who received curative treatment, again compared to men without prostate cancer
For men on surveillance, again compared to men without prostate cancer
The increases in risks for thromboembolic disease were still evident when patients were stratified by age and by tumor stage.
The authors conclude that increased risk for thromboembolic disease should be of concern in the management of all patients diagnosed with prostate cancer, with most specific concern being focused on men who are receiving some form of hormonal therapy.
The “New” Prostate Cancer InfoLink is tempted to wonder whether such risk for thromboembolic disease correlates in any way with the reduction in prostate cancer-specific mortality that is associated with the long-term use of statins and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). NSAIDs are most certainly associated with a reduction in risk for thromboembolic events, and since statins lower total and low-density cholesterol levels, they may also impact risk for thromboembolisms too.
A new epidemiological study from Sweden has suggested that all prostate cancer patients may be at slightly increased risk for thromboembolism (blood clots) compared to men in the general population, but the risk is greatest for men receiving hormone therapies.
Van Hemelrijck et al. , in an article published today in Lancet Oncology, used the PCBaSe Sweden database (a database that gathers information on more than 95 percent of all Swedish cases of prostate cancer) to investigate the risk of thromboembolic disease in men with prostate cancer who were receiving endocrine treatment, curative treatment, or some form of surveillance.
They calculated what are known as standardized incidence ratios (SIR) for deep-venous thrombosis (DVT), pulmonary embolism (blood clots in the lungs), and arterial embolism (blood clots in arteries) for patients in the PCBaSe Sweden database and compared these to the expected rates of the same conditions in the total Swedish male population.
The basic results of their analysis were as follows:
The authors conclude that increased risk for thromboembolic disease should be of concern in the management of all patients diagnosed with prostate cancer, with most specific concern being focused on men who are receiving some form of hormonal therapy.
The “New” Prostate Cancer InfoLink is tempted to wonder whether such risk for thromboembolic disease correlates in any way with the reduction in prostate cancer-specific mortality that is associated with the long-term use of statins and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). NSAIDs are most certainly associated with a reduction in risk for thromboembolic events, and since statins lower total and low-density cholesterol levels, they may also impact risk for thromboembolisms too.
Additional information about this story was provided by the Associated Press (see, for example, the story on the Forbes web site ).