This Type Of Prostate Cancer Treatment Increases The Risk Of Dementia By 20%

This type of prostate cancer treatment increases the risk of dementia by 20%

Patients with prostate cancer who received antihormone therapy were at increased risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer's disease, according to a new American study.

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The most common androgens in the male body are testosterone and dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Doctors prescribe therapy to lower the levels of these hormones because it can slow the growth or even shrink the prostate tumors.

Scientists who looked at nearly 155,000 cases of prostate cancer found that overall, those who received so-called androgen deprivation therapy (a treatment that reduces the effects of sex hormones on the body) had a 20% higher risk of dementia and a 14% higher risk of disease. Alzheimer's for the next 10 years. At the same time, the risk increased as the dose of androgen deprivation drugs increased.

The study's lead author, Ravishankar Jayadevappa of the University of Pennsylvania, believes the results suggest that when prostate cancer is localized, androgen deprivation therapy is probably not the best treatment option anymore. The research results are published in the JAMA Network Open journal.

The researchers focused their attention on men aged 66 and older who were diagnosed with localized or advanced (metastatic) prostate cancer between 1996 and 2003. The men were followed until 2013. Of 154,089 patients who participated in the study, 62,330 received androgen deprivation therapy within two years of diagnosis.

As a result, scientists found that 13.1% of men who received therapy and 9.4% who did not receive it during the observation period were diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Similarly, 21.6% of those who received antihormone therapy and 15.8% did not have other forms of dementia.

The risk increased as the dose increased: Men who received one to four doses of androgen deprivation therapy had a 19% higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease or dementia, and those who received eight or more doses had a 24% higher risk development of Alzheimer's disease and a 21% higher risk of developing dementia.