Ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) use may be associated with significantly lower risks of gastrointestinal (GI), liver and breast cancers in people with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC), according to a recent study published in JAMA Network Open.
UDCA is a standard first-line therapy that slows liver damage in PBC. While UDCA is well established to improve liver function and survival in PBC, its potential impact on cancer risk has been a subject of ongoing research.
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The authors aimed to evaluate whether the use of UDCA in patients diagnosed with PBC was associated with differences in the risk of subsequent cancers.
In this retrospective cohort study, researchers used the TriNetX electronic health record network to identify adults diagnosed with PBC and without prior cancer, then divided them into those who received UDCA soon after diagnosis and those who did not. Then, they applied a statistical model to compare risks of first primary cancers between UDCA users and nonusers. After matching, each cohort included more than 6,000 patients with similar age and sex distributions.
The authors found that UDCA use was associated with significantly lower risks of GI cancer, liver cancer and breast cancer in women, but showed no significant association with colorectal cancer risk.
This study suggests UDCA treatment may lower the incidence of certain cancers in people with PBC, adding to evidence that its anti-inflammatory and cell protective effects may extend beyond liver outcomes. However, definitive mechanisms and optimal long-term use require further study.
“The underlying protective mechanism of UDCA remains to be elucidated but is presumably related to its anti-inflammatory, antiproliferative, and cytoprotective properties,” the study’s authors noted.
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