In a nutshell
The authors aimed to determine whether the use of beta-blockers could reduce the risk of cancer recurrence (the cancer comes back) in women with breast cancer.
This study showed that beta-blockers can reduce the risk of cancer recurrence and the risk of death due to cancer.
Some background
Beta-blockers are a class of drug that are generally used help cardiac (heart) function. They prevent the stimulation of certain receptors that are also found in breast tissue. The stimulation of these receptors in breast cancer cells can aid tumor growth and development.
The use of beta-blockers in breast cancer treatment is not yet well understood.
Methods & findings
This study assessed whether the use of beta-blockers reduced the risk of breast cancer recurrence.
This study analyzed the results of 7 previous trials, which included 22,988 women in total. The study focused on the risks of cancer recurrence, breast cancer death and death due to other causes.
Beta-blockers reduced the risk of death from breast cancer by 50%. Beta-blockers did not significantly reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence or death from any cause.
The bottom line
The authors concluded that beta-blockers significantly reduced the risk of death from breast cancer.
The fine print
This was a meta-analysis, comparing results of several studies that used different beta-blockers.
Published By :
Clinical Breast Cancer
Date :
Dec 01, 2015
