Key clinical point: Use of beta-adrenergic receptor blockers is associated with decreased tumor-specific mortality in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), with the association with prolonged progression-free survival (PFS) being particularly significant in those with advanced CRC.
Major finding: Beta-blocker use was significantly associated with a lower cancer-specific (hazard ratio [HR] 0.87; P = .04) and overall 1-year (HR 0.54; P < .00001) mortality but not with overall survival (HR 0.95; P = .28) and exerted a significant positive effect on PFS (HR 0.76; P = .005) in patients with stage IV CRC.
Study details: This was a meta-analysis of 14 retrospective cohort studies involving 85,993 patients with CRC and data on beta-blocker treatment outcomes for ≥1 endpoints (overall survival, PFS, and cancer-specific mortality).
Disclosures: This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of China. The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
Source: Wang J et al. Beta adrenergic blockade and clinical outcomes in patients with colorectal cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur J Pharmacol. 2022;929:175135 (Jul 4). Doi: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2022.175135