ScienceDaily (June 26, 2008) — The use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) is not associated with a reduction in the risk of melanoma, according to the results of a large cohort study in the June 24 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Laboratory studies have suggested that NSAID use may be associated with a reduction in the risk of melanoma, but few epidemiological studies have investigated the issue.

To determine if there is an association, Maryam Asgari, M.D., of the Kaiser Permanente Northern California in Oakland and colleagues compared NSAID use over ten years and the incidence of melanoma in 63,809 individuals. The cohort was drawn from the Vitamins and Lifestyle cohort study. Melanoma cases were identified using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database.

The researchers identified 349 new melanoma cases in the cohort during the follow-up period. After adjusting for known melanoma risk factors, no association with NSAID use and melanoma risk was found. "The lack of effect was persistent even though our NSAIDs variables accounted for frequency and duration of NSAID use and we considered the major classes of NSAIDs separately and combined," the authors write.

Journal reference:

1. Asgari et al. A Large Cohort Study of Nonsteroidal Anti-inflammatory Drug Use and Melanoma Incidence. JNCI Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 2008; DOI: 10.1093/jnci/djn154

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