Anemia Drugs Increased Risk Of Blood Clots In Cancer Patients, Study Says

A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association says anemia drugs called ESAs or erythropoiesis stimulating agents, increase the risk of blood clots and death in cancer patients. ESAs, the study said, raise the risk of death by 10 percent in patients who took them compared to those who did not.

“Our findings, in conjunction with basic science studies, raise the concern that the drug may be stimulating cancer and shortening cancer patient’s survival,” said Dr. Charles Bennett of Northwestern University in Chicago.”The findings of mortality are new and are different from prior reports,” he added. The study extracted data from 51 clinical trials with 13,611 patients who were treated with ESA’s or a placebo.

ESAs, man-made versions of a human hormone called erythropoietin, are taken by millions of cancer and kidney disease patients. They work by stimulating production of oxygen carrying red blood cells.