Study: NSAID Usage May Raise The Risk of Prostate Cancer

Researcher in Finland found that the use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents (NSAIDs) is linked to an increased risk of prostate cancer.

Scientists at the University of Tampere School of Medicine, in Finland, led by Dr. Teemu Murtola, compared patient information of Finnish men diagnosed with prostate cancer against a group controls from 1995 to 2002. They found men who never taken NSAIDs had a 31 percent increased chance of prostate cancer overall, and a 63 percent increased chance of advanced prostate cancer.

Murtola and his research team gathered the cumulative COX-2 inhibition by multiplying the total cumulative amount (in milligrams) of each NSAID used with the COX-1/COX-2 inhibition ratios. They also estimated the propensity to NSAID use among users of medication to treat diabetes, hypertension, hypercholestolemia, and benign prostatic hyperplasia.

The study showed that NSAID usage is associated with increased prostate cancer risk at the population level regardless of the quantity of COX-2 inhibition caused by the usage.

“The major difference between our study and most of the previous studies is the source of information on NSAID usage” said Murtola, in a statement. “In our study the information came from a national prescription database, whereas most of the previous studies relied on survey information, i.e., on self-reported data.”