Malignancy in patients with psoriasis treated with biologics

[Fred]

This abstract ahead of print looked at the risk of malignancy in patients with psoriasis being treated with biologics.

Quote:

---

There is some debate regarding the risk of developing malignancy and progression of malignancy in patients with psoriasis treated with biologics.

The lack of extensive, long-term, and large studies, including patients with psoriasis, to assess these aforementioned risks makes it difficult to ascertain the safety profile of biologic therapy in these patients. Several studies do support the favorability of the safety profile of biologics in patients with psoriasis in terms of the risk of developing malignancy.

A few studies include patients with a previous history of cancer that were thereafter treated with biologics and show no increased risk of recurrence in those treated with biologics compared to non-biologic therapy. Although recent studies do not show an increased risk of new or recurrent malignancy in patients with psoriasis treated with biologic agents, there is still hesitancy in the widespread use of biologic agents in these patients.

Considering all of the current data and opinions, the benefits of biologic therapy to improve quality of life often outweigh the negligible risk of solid organ malignancy associated with biologics in patients with existing or previous malignancies. Coordinating the management of patients that develop or have a history of previous malignancy with an oncology team is crucial for patient-centered care until clear evidence-based guidelines are developed.

Source: onlinelibrary.wiley.com

*Early view funding unknown.

[Caroline]

Very good that they are researching this. Doctors too often just guess that a specific biological working on the immune system almost automatically will mean an increased risk on this malignancy. I have heard them talking about it on the recent psoriasis day meeting over here.