Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a degenerative autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammation in the joints, leading to pain, deformities and disability. Previous studies have suggested that newer rheumatoid arthritis drugs, such as Humira and Remicade, are associated with an increased risk of certain cancers, including lymphoma. Humira and Remicade are drugs which block the production of Tumor necrosis factor (TNF), a protein linked with inflammation. However, new research now reports that TNF-blocking drugs are not associated with an increased risk of cancer.
The study, published in Arthritis and Rheumatism, compared TNF-blocking drugs to methotrexate (a traditional RA drug) and the risk of cancer in patients with RA. Researchers at Harvard Medical School analyzed data from 1,152 patients receiving TNF-blocking drugs for an average of 2.6 years and 7,306 patients receiving methotrexate for 4.2 years. The participants taking TNF-blocking drugs tended to have more severe RA than those taking methotrexate.
The researchers found that there was no significant difference in cancer risk between the TNF-blocking group and the methotrexate group. However, it still remains unclear if the increased cancer risk is due to RA itself or to the treatment drugs. The study authors acknowledge that the treatment drugs improve the quality of life for RA patients.
"Our results indicate that users of biologic agents are unlikely to have a substantial increase in the risk of hematologic malignancies and solid tumors as compared with methotrexate users," the study authors write. "Despite the use of large combined data sets, studying the effect of an infrequent exposure (biologic DMARDs) on rare diseases (hematologic malignancies) remains a challenge."
REFERENCES:
1. Setoguchi S et al. Tumor necrosis factor alpha antagonist use and cancer in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum 2006 Sep;54(9):2757-64.
Posted by Elaine Gavalas on January 25, 2007 03:15 PM
