Prostate Cancer may Precipitate the Risk of Developing Serious Blood Clots

Risk of developing serious blood clots is found to be higher among men with prostate cancer when compared with men of the same age without prostate cancer, as per a study published in the online journal BMJ Open. Prostate cancer is a commonly diagnosed cancer in middle-aged and older men. Generally, people with cancer have a higher risk of developing a type of blood clot — venous thromboembolism (VTE) — dangerous but treatable blood clots in the veins.

Prostate Cancer and Blood Clots

VTE is known to be the leading cause of death among people with cancer, especially advanced diseases — two to three times higher in men with prostate cancer.

Although the risk is smaller among prostate cancer when compared to other cancers, the study encourages clinicians to be alert to this risk to enable timely diagnosis and treatment, should a blood clot occur.

It was found that 3.2% of men in the prostate cancer group experienced a VTE within about five years of their cancer diagnosis, compared with 2.1% of men in the comparison group.

“The magnitude of increased VTE risk among men with prostate cancer seen in our study is lower than that seen for other cancer types as seen in previous studies, and is likely attributable to the high proportion of men with localised disease and at low risk of cancer progression. Notwithstanding this, physicians treating men with prostate cancer should be aware of the marked increase in VTE risk in these men, particularly in the first six months following cancer diagnosis, to help ensure timely VTE diagnosis,” conclude the authors.

Source-Medindia