Long-term use of PPIs increases risk of gastric cancer, notes study

A recently published study has found a link between long-term use of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) and an increased risk of developing gastric cancer (GC).

PPIs are commonly prescribed drugs that reduce the amount of acid produced in the stomach. They are used for many conditions including peptic ulcers, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and as a part of Helicobacter pylori (HP) eradication therapy.

In the study, which was performed by researchers from Hong Kong and London and published in the journal Gut, patients infected with HP who had received HP therapy were examined. The population-based study identified 63,397 eligible patients — adults who had received an outpatient prescription of clarithromycin-based triple therapy between 2003 and 2012. Histamine-2 receptor antagonists (H2RA) were used as a negative control exposure.

Out of the eligible patients, the researchers found that 153 developed GC during follow up (median of 7.6 years). Additionally, the results demonstrated that those prescribed with PPIs were at an increased risk of developing GC whereas those prescribed H2RA were not. Furthermore, the longer PPIs were used by patients the higher the risk of developing GC became.

Speaking to The Guardian, Stephen Evans, professor of pharmacoepidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said in response to the study results: “Many observational studies have found adverse effects associated with PPIs. The most plausible explanation for the totality of evidence on this is that those who are given PPIs, and especially those who continue on them long-term, tend to be sicker in a variety of ways than those for whom they are not prescribed.”