PPI Heartburn Drugs Linked to Higher Risk of Complications During Breast Cancer Treatment

While common heartburn drugs like Nexium and Prilosec are believed to make cancer cells more susceptible to treatment, researchers are now raising concerns about their use to treat breast cancer.

A new study suggests that women with breast cancer who take common heartburn medications, such as Nexium, Prilosec and similar drugs, may face a higher risk of experiencing side effects and other health problems.

According to findings published in the journal Cancer Medicine late last month, women with breast cancer who use proton-pump inhibitors (PPIs) like Prilosec, Prevacid and Nexium have a 36% higher risk of suffering serious complications during breast cancer treatments.

PPIs are a widely used class of drugs that are taken to reduce stomach acid and treat conditions like heartburn, ulcers and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), by blocking the “proton pumps” in the stomach lining that produce acid. They come in both prescription and over-the-counter versions.

PPI Use in Breast Cancer Treatment

PPIs have drawn interest from cancer researchers in recent years, due to evidence that acid-reducing drugs may influence how cancer cells respond to therapy. Some studies suggest medications like Nexium could help sensitize tumor cells, potentially making them more responsive to chemotherapy and radiation.

However, a study conducted by South Korean researchers in July 2023 warned that PPIs like Prilosec and Prevacid may interfere with breast cancer drugs, like Ibrance and Kisqali, resulting in poor outcomes for cancer patients, and leading to low overall survival rates.

Another study published earlier this year concluded PPIs like Nexium and Prevacid may increase a woman’s risk of developing hypertension, especially if they are menopausal. The risk of high blood pressure increased by nearly 20% if the woman took PPIs and was also going through menopause.

Other research has linked taking PPIs like Nexium and their damage to the lining of the small intestine and esophagus to a 76% increased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease.

While the drugs have been promoted for years as safe and effective, leading many to believe they carry few serious side effects, manufacturers have faced thousands of Nexium lawsuits, Protonix lawsuits, Prilosec lawsuits and Prevacid lawsuits over failures to warn about side effects of PPIs. Plaintiffs often allege they have been left with acute kidney injury, chronic kidney disease, end-stage renal failure and other unexpected health problems as a result of taking these kinds of medications.

PPI Use Linked to Serious Side Effects

In this new study, Dr. Natansh D. Modi and a team of researchers from Flinders University in Australia examined data for more than 23,000 participants across 19 breast cancer clinical trials.

The data indicated that taking PPIs like Nexium was linked to poor overall survival and a lower likelihood of cancer progression-free survival. Furthermore, PPI use increased a woman’s risk of suffering serious side effects by 36%, making them more likely to suffer grade 3 or worse adverse events, which are especially serious, and can lead to immediately life-threatening side effects which may require hospitalization. Side effects can include high-grade fever, frequent vomiting, severe pain and other complications.

Taking beta blockers like Lopressor, ACE inhibitors like Lotensin, and calcium channel blockers like Lotrel to lower blood pressure were also linked by the research team to a higher risk of side effects, but did not reduce the risk of overall survival.

“The association between PPIs and poorer outcomes in this study aligns with a growing body of evidence suggesting potential risks associated with their use in patients with cancer.”

– Dr. Natansh D. Modi, Associations of Commonly Used Concomitant Medications With Survival and Adverse Event Outcomes in Breast Cancer

Researchers said the study raises questions about the use of routine medications alongside breast cancer treatments. According to researchers, the findings highlight a need for increased monitoring of patients while using these drugs.

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