Androgen deprivation therapy for prostate cancer does not increase cardiovascular mortality in the long term

To determine if 6 months of neo-adjuvant androgen deprivation is associated with the long-term risk of cardiac mortality.

In the TROG 96.01 trial, 802 men with locally advanced prostate cancer were randomized to radiotherapy either alone or with 3 or 6 months of neo-adjuvant androgen deprivation therapy (NADT). Competing risk methodology was used to derive the cumulative incidence of fatal cardiac events.

At 10 years, the cumulative incidence of fatal cardiac events for the radiation therapy alone arm was 7.54% compared to a nonstatistically significant decreased incidence of 6.44% in the 6-month NADT arm (p = 0.65). Men aged over 65 years were not at an increased risk. Additional androgen deprivation therapy given as secondary treatment at tumor progression did not confer an increased risk.

These data suggest that fatal cardiac events are not more common in men receiving up to 6 months of NADT.