SynthesisJournal of cancer research and clinical oncology2014
Meta-analysis of the effects of beta blocker on survival time in cancer patients.
Synthesis in Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 48 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
48 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 81 citations in OpenAlex.
- Does propranolol have a role in cancer treatment? A systematic review of the epidemiological and clinical trial literature on beta-blockers.Journal of cancer research and clinical oncology · 2025Pooled it
- Beta-adrenergic receptor blockers and hepatocellular carcinoma survival: a systemic review and meta-analysis.Clinical and experimental medicine · 2023Pooled it
- Perioperative Administration of an Intravenous Beta-Blocker Landiolol Hydrochloride in Patients with Lung Cancer: A Japanese Retrospective Exploratory Clinical Study.Scientific reports · 2019Trial
- Digoxin and prostate cancer survival in the Finnish Randomized Study of Screening for Prostate Cancer.British journal of cancer · 2016Trial
- The Neuro-Bone Axis in Metastatic Progression: Innervation, Neuro-Immune-Osteoclast Crosstalk, and Therapeutic Opportunities.Biology · 2026Review
- Recent advances in drug repositioning and rediscovery for different therapeutic activities utilizing updated technological approaches.Molecular diversity · 2026Review
- Prognostic significance of beta-adrenergic receptor expression in oesophageal adenocarcinoma.The journal of pathology. Clinical research · 2026Article
- Beta-blockers prolong response to androgen deprivation therapy in prostate cancer through modulation of the neuro-immuno-oncology axis.Journal of translational medicine · 2025Article
- Impact of Tumoral β2-Adrenergic Receptor Expression on Chemotherapeutic Response and Prognosis in Patients with Advanced Colorectal Cancer.Annals of surgical oncology · 2025Article
- The Role of Anesthetic Management in Lung Cancer Recurrence and Metastasis: A Comprehensive Review.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Review
- Article
- Review
- Interplay between acute coronary syndromes and cancer: insights into pathophysiology, diagnostic challenges, and treatment options.Archives of medical sciences. Atherosclerotic diseases · 2023Article
- The Central Nervous Mechanism of Stress-Promoting Cancer Progression.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Review
- Subclinical cardiac damage in cancer patients before chemotherapy.Heart failure reviews · 2022Review
- Immunosuppressive metabolites in tumoral immune evasion: redundancies, clinical efforts, and pathways forward.Journal for immunotherapy of cancer · 2021Review
- Impact of Concomitant Cardiovascular Medication on Survival of Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma Patients Treated with Sunitinib or Pazopanib in the First Line.Targeted oncology · 2021Article
- Elevated resting heart rate is a marker of subclinical left ventricular dysfunction in hodgkin lymphoma survivors.International journal of cardiology. Heart & vasculature · 2021Article
- Mechanisms Supporting the Use of Beta-Blockers for the Management of Breast Cancer Bone Metastasis.Cancers · 2021Review
- Beta-blockers have no impact on survival in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma prior to cancer diagnosis.Scientific reports · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeThis study was to elucidate the potential benefit of beta blockers on cancer survival.
methodsWe comprehensively searched PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane Library from their inception to April 2013. Two authors independently screened and reviewed the eligibility of each study and coded the participants, treatment, and outcome characteristics. The primary outcomes were overall survival (OS) and disease-free survival (DFS).
resultsTwelve studies published between 1993 and 2013 were included in the final analysis. Four papers reported results from 10 independent groups, resulting in a total of 18 comparisons based on data obtained from 20,898 subjects. Effect sizes (hazard ratios, HR) were heterogeneous, and random-effects models were used in the analyses. The meta-analysis demonstrated that beta blocker use is associated with improved OS (HR 0.79; 95 % CI 0.67-0.93; p = 0.004) and DFS (HR 0.69; 95 % CI 0.53-0.91; p = 0.009). Although statistically not significant, the effect size was greater in patients with low-stage cancer or cancer treated primarily with surgery than in patients with high-stage cancer or cancer treated primarily without surgery (HR 0.60 vs. 0.78, and 0.60 vs. 0.80, respectively). Although only two study codes were analyzed, the studies using nonselective beta blockers showed that there was no overall effect on OS (HR 0.52, 95 % CI 0.09-3.04).
conclusionThis meta-analysis provides evidence that beta blocker use can be associated with the prolonged survival of cancer patients, especially patients with early-stage cancer treated primarily with surgery.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.