Spironolactone and the risk of urinary tract cancer in patients with hypertension

AIM: This was a nationwide study by National Health Insurance Research Database to investigate the risk of urinary tract cancers (UTCs) for renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors including spironolactone. METHODS: A total of 32 167 UTC patients with hypertension were enrolled in the National Health Insurance program between 2005 and 2011. RESULTS: Among different subclasses of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors, the adjusted odds ratio (OR) for UTC risk was 1.00 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.96-1.04] in angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors, 1.22 (95% CI = 1.18-1.26) in patients who received angiotensin II receptor blockers, 0.91 (95% CI = 0.87-0.96) in spironolactone. Spironolactone is associated with a significantly lower risk of prostate cancer (adjusted OR = 0.88, 95% CI = 0.82-0.94) in the male patients. A similar trend was observed in the female patients for the risk of bladder cancer (adjusted OR = 0.81, 95% CI = 0.72-0.92). CONCLUSION: Our findings show that a lower risk of UTCs significantly associated with spironolactone in patients.