In a nutshell
The authors aimed to determine the complications of hormone therapy in patients with advanced prostate cancer.
Some background
Hormone therapy is a prostate cancer treatment that targets the male sex hormones, such as testosterone, active in cancer. In some patients hormone therapy can cause side effects such as bone damage, heart disease, weight gain and diabetes while other patients may become resistant to hormone therapy.
Methods & findings
The aim of this study was to determine the effects of hormone therapy in patients with advanced prostate cancer.
Out of 390 prostate cancer patients, 42.9% who received hormone therapy experienced osteoporosis (weakening in the bones leading to breaks and fractures) after two years treatment compared to 35.4% of patients who did not receive hormone therapy. In a review of over 50,000 men, patients who received hormone therapy had a significantly increased occurrence of bone fractures at 19.4% compared to 12.6% of patients who did not receive hormone therapy.
Patients who were given alendronate (Fosamax) experienced significantly increased bone strength (strong bones reduce the risk of fractures and breaks) of 1.7% compared to a decrease in bone strength of 1.9% in patients who did not receive alendronate. Patients who received denosumab (Xgeva) had 5.6% increased bone strength compared to a 1% loss in bone strength in patients who did not receive denosumab after hormone therapy.
13,000 patients who received hormone therapy had a 17% increased risk of experiencing heart disease and a 21% increased risk of experiencing sudden cardiac death (sudden death due to heart complications) compared to patients who did not receive hormone therapy.
58 patients were used in a study to determine metabolic syndrome (increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat and high cholesterol) after treatment. 55% of patients experienced metabolic syndrome after hormone therapy compared to 22% of patients who did not receive hormone therapy. 36.1 metabolic events per 1000 people occurred each year in patients treated with hormone therapy compared to 21.1 events per 1000 patients who did not receive hormone therapy.
The bottom line
The authors conclude that patients with advanced prostate cancer are more at risk of experiencing bone and metabolic complications when treated with hormone therapy.
The fine print
This was a compilation of studies so experimental measures may have differed and biased the results presented.
What’s next?
If you are considering hormone therapy please consult your doctor for the potential benefits and risks of treatment.
Published By :
Internal medicine journal
Date :
Mar 02, 2015
