| August
24, 2007
NSAIDs May Protect Against Bladder Cancer,
Phenacetin Raises Risk
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Aug 24 - Regular use of NSAIDs, especially
aspirin, may decrease the risk of bladder cancer, particularly
more advanced, high grade tumors containing alterations in the
tumor suppressor protein TP53, results of a study suggest.
The findings also provide further evidence of an increased risk
of bladder cancer among users of phenacetin-containing analgesics,
particularly long-term users. Phenacetin was withdrawn from the
US market in the 1980s.
For their study, Dr. Margaret R. Karagas of Dartmouth Medical
School, Hanover, New Hampshire, and colleagues assessed lifetime
use of analgesics and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in
relation to bladder cancer incidence in a population-based case-control
study. Cases included 376 individuals with bladder cancer and
463 controls from New Hampshire.
Overall, 42% of cases and 45% of controls reported regular use
of a pain reliever.
Patients with bladder cancer cases reported regular phenacetin
use significantly more often than controls (odds ratio, 2.2),
the researchers report in the August 10 issue of the online peer-reviewed
journal BMC Urology. The odds ratio was higher (OR, 3.0) among
those who reported regular phenacetin use for more than 8 years.
In contrast, there was no correlation, overall, between use of
paracetamol/acetaminophen and risk of bladder cancer.
However, regular use of any NSAID was associated with a statistically
significant reduced risk of bladder cancer (OR = 0.6), an association
that was largely due to regular aspirin use. Regular NSAID use
seemed to protect against invasive, high grade and TP53-positive
tumors, in particular.
Dr. Karagas and colleagues suggest that, "in light of the
chemopreventive effects of NSAIDs including aspirin for other
neoplasms, the possibility that they may reduce bladder cancer
incidence warrants further consideration. Studies assessing the
effect on bladder cancer prognosis are lacking but would be of
great interest."
BMC Urology 2007;7.
Source: www.medscape.com
Comment:
Numerous recent studies have shown that NSAIDs are associated
with serious side effects like heartburn, gastritis, gastric
ulcers, high blood pressure, kidney and liver problems etc.
How can such chemicals that are associated with dangerous
side effects be used to prevent cancer? Is this risk worth
taking? Or is this the way pharmaceutical industry makes
sure that they always have a pool of patients sick with
one condition or another? Dr. Rath's research clearly shows
that cancer can be approached in a safe and effective way
by using synergistic combinations of specific natural nutrients
instead of harmful synthetic molecules. To find more details
about our research on cancer, please visit
www.drrathresearch.org
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