AUA 2019: Can a Beta-Blocker Impact the Risk of Prostate Cancer?
Posted: Monday, May 20, 2019
The rates of intermediate- and low-risk prostate cancers seem to be significantly lower in men taking atenolol compared with men who did not take the beta-blocker, according to a retrospective review presented at the 2019 American Urological Association (AUA) Annual Meeting in Chicago (Abstract MP48-16). However, the study found no significant difference in biopsy findings among users of carvedilol, metoprolol, or other beta-blockers.
“Our results, combined with recent results from preclinical models of prostate cancer, provide preliminary support for further research into the use of atenolol as a potential protective pharmacologic agent against de novo prostate cancer or prostate cancer disease progression,” stated Ali Zahalka, MD, PhD, of Montefiore Medical Center in the Bronx, New York, and colleagues.
The study included 4,182 men who underwent an initial prostate biopsy for any indication during the study period. The majority of participants (64%) self-identified as black or Hispanic. The investigators assessed oral beta-blocker use—atenolol, metoprolol, or carvedilol—by reviewing the patient’s active prescriptions and refill history within 1 year preceding their biopsy.
The men with prostate cancer on biopsy were classified into the following risk groups (by NCCN criteria): 337 (8.1%) high risk, 1,029 (25.0%) intermediate risk, 169 (4%) low risk, and 671 (16.0%) very low risk. A total of 669 men were included in the beta-blocker cohort; of those patients, 350 had benign pathology and 319 had prostate cancer. Atenolol displayed a “significant protective effect” on both incident low-risk (P = .02) and intermediate-risk prostate cancers (P = .03), after the investigators adjusted for variables, and was associated with a reduction in incident intermediate-risk prostate cancer of approximately 50% compared with men not taking a beta-blocker.
Disclosure: The study authors’ disclosure information may be found at auajournals.org.
