No association between use of phosphodiesterase 5 inhibitors and colorectal cancer in men with erectile dysfunction.

Abstract

There is an increase interest on the potential chemoprotective effect of selective phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5) inhibitors. Several authors have shown in vivo the immune-mediated anti-tumor effect of these inhibitors on tumors arising from the digestive tract. To test the potential effect of selective PDE5 inhibitors against colorectal cancer (CRC) onset previously observed. We used data from The Health Improvement Network database and identified an established cohort of 200 000 new users of low-dose aspirin and a matched comparison cohort aged 40-84 years between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2011. A follow-up to identify CRC cases was performed within an extensive validation exercise. Nested case-control analyses compared PDE5 inhibitors vs non-use on CRC risk were performed. Restricting to males (59.3% controls and 59.5% cases), no association was observed among current users of PDE5 inhibitors (1.05 [95% CI: 0.69-1.60]) and neither among recent (1.36 [95% CI: 0.81-2.28]) or past users (1.06 [95% CI: 0.72-1.58]). No duration response effect was found. Our results do not support an increased risk of CRC associated with the use of PDE5 inhibitors among men with erectile dysfunction.