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Benefits and risks of ACE inhibitors
A recently published study has revealed a possible badociation between commonly prescribed drugs for hypertension and the development of lung cancer, causing a great deal of uncertainty in hypertensive patients. It is suspected that ACE inhibitors contained in many drugs for blood pressure increase the risk of lung cancer. German cardiology experts comment on the results of the study and clarify the real risk.
Professor Bernhard Krämer is President of the German High Pressure League. He reviewed the journal's study "The BMJ" and commented on the validity of the study and the real risks that drugs with ACE inhibitors represent. These are especially used for hypertension and heart failure.
Inhibitors of ACE cause lung cancer?
Researchers at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, have discovered in a recent study that generalized hypertension pills can lead to lung cancer if they include the substance group of inhibitors of the lungs. ACE. Scientists have come to the conclusion that patients taking such drugs are six percent more likely to develop lung cancer.
Do not jump to conclusions
"However, it is an observational study whose probative value is limited," write the specialists of the German high pressure league. They advise not to sell the drug without consulting the doctor. Patients should seek advice from their treating physician regarding the individual benefits and risks of the drug. The treatment of hypertension should be continued in all cases. The doctor may also prescribe other antihypertensives if the uncertainty surrounding a possible risk of cancer is too high.
The study is not very significant
As an expert on the report of the German League Against Hypertension, this study is an observational study that can only show badociations. While this shows that there may be a link between ACE inhibitors and lung cancer, this does not prove it. For this, a prospective randomized study must be performed in which all possible disturbances are excluded.
Lung cancer has many triggers
According to experts in cardiology, lung cancer is a so-called multifactorial disease. This means that many factors can promote training. These factors include mainly smoking, airborne pollutants, exposure to carcinogens such as asbestos, arsenic, chromium or nickel and genetic predispositions. . Overweight and excessive consumption of alcohol can also increase the risk of cancer. In addition, age and bad are risk factors because more than twice as many men than women develop lung cancer.
Criticism of the results of the study
Looking more closely at the results of the study, there are some differences among the experts of the German Foundation for the Heart. For example, in the group treated with ACE inhibitors, many more obese people were present. The proportion of smokers and people with alcohol problems in the ACE group was also slightly higher. In addition, the average age in this group was almost three years higher than in the control group. "These differences may have influenced the study results and the higher risk of lung cancer in patients treated with an ACE inhibitor," conclude the experts.
This possible connection needs to be examined in more detail
"The probative value of the present study is therefore rather weak and the authors of the study have themselves called for further investigations," reports Prof. Dr. med. Bernhard Krämer in a press release. Large randomized controlled trials have shown that ACE inhibitors significantly reduce mortality from heart disease.
Expert Advice: Do not drop blood pressure cures arbitrarily
"We hope the result will not cause cancer patients to stop antihypertensive treatment without consulting their GP," said the professor. If patients simply fail to take their medication for blood pressure, the consequences could be serious. Untreated high blood pressure can lead to strokes, heart attacks, kidney failure or dementia. This could happen much sooner than a possible cancer. (Vb)
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