Men receiving hormonal androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) for prostate cancer (PCa) are at increased risk for myocardial infarction and stroke, new findings suggest.
In a nationwide population-based study of 31,571 PCa patients in Denmark, researchers found that, in adjusted analyses, the 9,204 patients who received hormonal ADT (either antiandrogens or gonadotropin-releasing hormone agonists) had a 31% increased risk of myocardial infarction (MI) and 19% increased risk of stroke compared with patients who did not receive ADT, according to an online report in European Urology. They observed no increased risk of either MI or stroke among the 2,060 patients who underwent orchiectomy.
“Decisions about ADT should weigh improvements in cancer-specific outcome against potential increased risks for cardiovascular diseases,” the authors, led by Christina G. Jespersen, MD, of Aarhus University Hospital, concluded.
Continue Reading
Dr. Jespersen and her colleagues stated that their findings are in line with the results of other recent studies. The association, they noted, “appears biologically plausible due to development of metabolic syndrome, which predisposes to development of thrombosis.”
