Skip Navigation


Rheumatology Advance Access originally published online on December 5, 2006
Rheumatology 2007 46(4):690-694; doi:10.1093/rheumatology/kel396
This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
46/4/690    most recent
kel396v1
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in ISI Web of Science
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Bernatsky, S.
Right arrow Articles by Rahme, E.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Bernatsky, S.
Right arrow Articles by Rahme, E.
Related Collections
Right arrow Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Autoimmunity
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

© The Author 2006. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Society for Rheumatology. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma—meta-analyses of the effects of corticosteroids and non-steroidal anti-inflammatories

S. Bernatsky, J. L. Lee and E. Rahme

Division of Clinical Epidemiology, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Canada.

Correspondence to: Dr Sasha Bernatsky, Division of Clinical Epidemiology, McGill University Health Centre (MUHC), 687 Pine Avenue West, V Building, Montreal, Quebec H3A 1A1, Canada. E-mail: sasha.bernatsky{at}mail.mcgill.ca


  Abstract

Objective. Recent research has focused on the effects of corticosteroids and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs/agents (NSAIDs) on non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) risk, with inconclusive results. We conducted meta-analyses of data published to date, to ascertain the over-all association between NHL and corticosteroid use, and between NHL and NSAID use.

Methods. Literature searches were performed to find studies assessing the effects of corticosteroids and/or NSAIDs on NHL risk. We analysed nine case-control studies and one cohort study of the effect of corticosteroids and/or NSAIDs on NHL risk. We performed a formal meta-analysis using summary measures from these studies.

Results. The studies contributed 6897 NHL cases and 8881 controls for the corticosteroid analyses, and 5794 NHL cases and 34 707 controls for the NSAID analyses. There was no heterogeneity of the odds ratio (OR) estimates. The overall OR for the effect of corticosteroid exposure on NHL occurrence was not suggestive of an increased risk [OR 1.09, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.96–1.24]. Similarly, the OR for the effect of NSAIDs on NHL occurrence did not support an increased risk (OR 0.93, 95% CI 0.74–1.14).

Conclusions. Our meta-analyses suggest little evidence that corticosteroid or NSAID exposures are themselves risk factors for NHL. Early data linking corticosteroids and/or NSAIDs with NHL may reflect an underlying increased risk of lymphoma in patient populations that use these medications (i.e. autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis), and may point to the importance of disease activity in driving NHL risk in these populations.

KEY WORDS: Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, NHL, corticosteroids, NSAID, meta-analysis

Submitted 17 May 2006; revised version accepted 25 October 2006.
Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?




Disclaimer:
Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.