Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), which is used in the treatment of prostate cancer (PCa), is associated with increased morbidity.
Severe bone loss is a major consequence of androgen ablation and with an increasing number of patients undergoing this treatment, the incidence of osteoporosis and fractures can be expected to increase with a significant impact on healthcare. To evaluate the prevalence of osteoporosis, we conducted a review of the literature on bone health in men with PCa undergoing ADT. A meta-analysis was conducted using the quality effects model, and sources of heterogeneity were further explored by consideration of discordant effect sizes of included studies in the meta-analysis and examining reasons thereof. Our analyses indicate that the prevalence of osteoporosis varies between 9 and 53 % with this variation partially explained by treatment duration, disease stage, ethnicity and site of osteoporosis measurement. While it is well known that a rapid decline in bone health amongst men with PCa on ADT occurs, this meta-analysis documents the high prevalence of osteoporosis in this population and reinforces the need of preventative approaches as part of usual care of PCa patients.
Written by:
Lassemillante AC, Doi SA, Hooper JD, Prins JB, Wright OR. Are you the author?
Centre for Dietetics Research (C-DIET-R), School of Human Movement Studies, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, 4072, Australia.
Reference: Endocrine. 2013 Oct 31. Epub ahead of print.
doi: 10.1007/s12020-013-0083-z
PubMed Abstract
PMID: 24174178
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