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Bisphosphonates, used for preventing and treating osteoporosis, can cause irritation of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. However, whether use of these drugs is associated with excess risk for GI cancers is unclear. Using two large primary care databases, U.K. investigators conducted population-based, case-control studies to assess the association between bisphosphonate use (estimated from prescription data) and risk for GI cancers in older patients (age, ≥50).
Researchers matched each of 56,000 cases of colorectal, esophageal, or gastric cancer with as many as 5 controls in the same database. Adjusted for multiple confounders, overall bisphosphonate use (≥1 prescription) was not associated with excess risk for colorectal, esophageal, or gast…