IMPORTANCE: A Cochrane review and network meta-analysis concluded that there is need for more research on adverse effects, including cancer, after treatment with tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) antagonists and that national registries and large databases would provide relevant sources of data to evaluate these effects. OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) exposed to TNF-α antagonists were at increased risk of developing cancer. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Nationwide register-based cohort study in Denmark, 1999-2012. Participants were 56,146 patients 15 years or older with IBD identified in the National Patient Registry, of whom 4553 (8.1%) were exposed to TNF-α antagonists. Cancer cases were identified in the Danish Cancer Registry. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Rate ratios (RRs) for incident cancer (overall and site-specific) comparing TNF-α antagonist users and nonusers, estimated using Poisson regression adjusted for age, calendar year, disease duration, propensity scores, and use of other IBD medications. RESULTS: During 489,433 person-years of follow-up (median, 9.3 years [interquartile range, 4.2-14.0]), 81 of 4553 patients exposed to TNF-α antagonists (1.8%) (median follow-up, 3.7 years [interquartile range, 1.8-6.0]) and 3465 of 51,593 unexposed patients (6.7%) developed cancer, yielding a fully adjusted RR of 1.07 (95% CI, 0.85-1.36). There was no significantly increased risk of cancer in analyses according to time since first TNF-α antagonist exposure (less than 1 year: RR, 1.10 [95% CI, 0.67-1.81]; 1 to less than 2 years: RR, 1.22 [95% CI, 0.77-1.93]; 2 to less than 5 years: RR, 0.82 [95% CI, 0.54-1.24]; 5 or more years: RR, 1.33 [95% CI, 0.88-2.03]) and in analyses according to the number of TNF-α antagonist doses received (1 to 3 doses: RR, 1.02 [95% CI, 0.71-1.47]; 4 to 7 doses: RR, 0.89 [95% CI, 0.55-1.42]; 8 or more doses: RR, 1.29 [95% CI, 0.90-1.85]). No site-specific cancers were in significant excess in fully adjusted models. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In this Danish nationwide study, exposure to TNF-α antagonists among patients with IBD was not associated with an increased risk of cancer over a median follow-up of 3.7 years among those exposed. An increased risk associated with longer-term accumulated doses and follow-up cannot be excluded.
IMPORTANCE: A Cochrane review and network meta-analysis concluded that there is need for more research on adverse effects, including cancer, after treatment with tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) antagonists and that national registries and large databases would provide relevant sources of data to evaluate these effects. OBJECTIVE: To investigate whether patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) exposed to TNF-α antagonists were at increased risk of developing cancer. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Nationwide register-based cohort study in Denmark, 1999-2012. Participants were 56,146 patients 15 years or older with IBD identified in the National Patient Registry, of whom 4553 (8.1%) were exposed to TNF-α antagonists. Cancer cases were identified in the Danish Cancer Registry. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Rate ratios (RRs) for incident cancer (overall and site-specific) comparing TNF-α antagonist users and nonusers, estimated using Poisson regression adjusted for age, calendar year, disease duration, propensity scores, and use of other IBD medications. RESULTS: During 489,433 person-years of follow-up (median, 9.3 years [interquartile range, 4.2-14.0]), 81 of 4553 patients exposed to TNF-α antagonists (1.8%) (median follow-up, 3.7 years [interquartile range, 1.8-6.0]) and 3465 of 51,593 unexposed patients (6.7%) developed cancer, yielding a fully adjusted RR of 1.07 (95% CI, 0.85-1.36). There was no significantly increased risk of cancer in analyses according to time since first TNF-α antagonist exposure (less than 1 year: RR, 1.10 [95% CI, 0.67-1.81]; 1 to less than 2 years: RR, 1.22 [95% CI, 0.77-1.93]; 2 to less than 5 years: RR, 0.82 [95% CI, 0.54-1.24]; 5 or more years: RR, 1.33 [95% CI, 0.88-2.03]) and in analyses according to the number of TNF-α antagonist doses received (1 to 3 doses: RR, 1.02 [95% CI, 0.71-1.47]; 4 to 7 doses: RR, 0.89 [95% CI, 0.55-1.42]; 8 or more doses: RR, 1.29 [95% CI, 0.90-1.85]). No site-specific cancers were in significant excess in fully adjusted models. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In this Danish nationwide study, exposure to TNF-α antagonists among patients with IBD was not associated with an increased risk of cancer over a median follow-up of 3.7 years among those exposed. An increased risk associated with longer-term accumulated doses and follow-up cannot be excluded.
Authors: Ronac Mamtani; Amy S Clark; Frank I Scott; Colleen M Brensinger; Ben Boursi; Lang Chen; Fenglong Xie; Huifeng Yun; Mark T Osterman; Jeffrey R Curtis; James D Lewis Journal: Arthritis Rheumatol Date: 2016-10 Impact factor: 10.995
Authors: María Chaparro; M Ramas; J M Benítez; A López-García; A Juan; J Guardiola; M Mínguez; X Calvet; L Márquez; L I Fernández Salazar; L Bujanda; C García; Y Zabana; R Lorente; J Barrio; E Hinojosa; M Iborra; M Domínguez Cajal; M Van Domselaar; M F García-Sepulcre; F Gomollón; M Piqueras; G Alcaín; V García-Sánchez; J Panés; E Domènech; E García-Esquinas; F Rodríguez-Artalejo; J P Gisbert Journal: Am J Gastroenterol Date: 2017-05-23 Impact factor: 10.864