Common prostate cancer therapy may carry risks

Androgen deprivation therapy - one of the most common treatments for prostate cancer - may increase the risk of death from heart disease in patients over age 65, according to a new study by researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Brigham and Women's Hospital, and other institutions.

The study results were based on data from CaPSURE, a national registry of men with prostate cancer. Although the findings need to be confirmed in clinical trials, the study authors state that oncologists should weigh the benefits of androgen deprivation therapy, or ADT, against the risk of heart problems in older prostate cancer patients.

The findings were presented at the Prostate Cancer Symposium in Orlando, Fla., Saturday (Feb. 24). The symposium is sponsored by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology, and the Society of Urologic Oncology.

The goal of ADT is to block the level of circulating androgens (male hormones), which can fuel the growth of prostate cancers. "Androgen deprivation therapy is associated with elevated body mass index, increased body fat deposits, and diabetes, all of which raise the risk of death from heart disease," explains the study's lead author, Henry Tsai, a resident physician at Dana-Farber, Brigham and Women's, and the Harvard Radiation Oncology Program. "Although our findings demonstrated that older men receiving this treatment may be at increased risk, even after taking into account other cardiovascular risk factors, a prospective clinical trial would be needed to confirm a cause-and-effect relationship."