Androgen Deprivation Therapy Not Linked With Risk of Dementia

Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) use among patients with prostate cancer was not associated with an increased risk of dementia, according to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.¹

Researchers conducted a cohort study of 30,903 men with newly-diagnosed, non-metastatic prostate cancer through the United Kingdom’s Clinical Practice Research Datalink to examine any possible link between ADT use and increased risk of dementia in this patient population.

“Recent observational studies have associated the use of ADT with an increased risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, but these studies had limitations,” the authors noted.

The researchers found that ADT use was not associated with increased dementia risk compared to non-use. In total, 799 patients had newly diagnosed with dementia for every 1000 person-years upon a mean follow-up of 4.3 years.

No single ADT type or cumulative duration of use was associated with an increased dementia risk upon secondary analyses.

Reference

1. Khosrow-Khavar F, Rej S, Yin H, Aprikian A, Azoulay L. Androgen deprivation therapy and the risk of dementia in patients with prostate cancer. J Clin Oncol. 2016 Nov 21. doi: 10.1200/JCO.2016.69.6203 [Epub ahead of print]