A research team from the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Hong Kong has published a study estimating that the use of antipsychotic drugs may increase the risk of breast cancer by around 30 percent. The risk is linked to the prolactin-raising properties of some of these drugs. The results of the study were published in the Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences.
Such studies underline the importance of physicians weighing the effects of a treatment against a drug’s potential risks when prescribing them.
Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer among women in Hong Kong, accounting for 27.4 percent of all new cancer cases in women in 2019. Earlier studies have found that patients with psychosis and bipolar disorders tend to have higher rates of breast cancer compared to the general population, which may be related to the use of antipsychotic drugs. Other studies have suggested that prolactin plays an important role in the development of breast cancer….