ArticleJCO precision oncology2023
Beta-Blocker Use Is Associated With Worse Relapse-Free Survival in Patients With Head and Neck Cancer.
Article in JCO precision oncology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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
15 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 16 citations in OpenAlex.
- Impact of beta blockers on cancer neuroimmunology: a systematic review and meta-analysis of survival outcomes and immune modulation.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Pooled it
- Cancer Neuroscience: From Local Neuro-Immune Microenvironments to Systemic Brain-Body Circuitry.MedComm · 2026Review
- β-Adrenergic Signaling Promotes Anti-Tumor Immunity in TP53-mutant Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Peripheral Nerve-Cancer Interactions in the Tumor Microenvironment: A Three-Dimensional Framework Integrating Mechanisms, Modulators, and Therapeutic Strategies.Research (Washington, D.C.) · 2026Review
- Social genomics and cancer - untangling nature from nurture in squamous cell carcinoma outcomes.Frontiers in oncology · 2026Review
- Turning cold tumors into hot tumors to ignite immunotherapy.Molecular cancer · 2025Review
- Neuro-immune cross-talk in cancer.Nature reviews. Cancer · 2025Review
- Cancer and neurotransmitter receptors.Chinese medical journal · 2025Review
- Antihypertensive drugs and survival outcomes in oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma patients.Journal of the National Cancer Institute · 2025Article
- The Impact of Beta Blockers on Survival in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Cancers · 2025Review
- Perineural invasion as a neuro-immune niche in head and neck cancer: mechanisms of immune evasion and therapeutic implications.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Review
- Targeting the peripheral neural-tumour microenvironment for cancer therapy.Nature reviews. Drug discovery · 2024Review
- The clinicopathological and prognostic significance of autonomic nerves in salivary duct carcinoma.Virchows Archiv : an international journal of pathology · 2024Article
- Understanding the role of nerves in head and neck cancers - a review.Oncology reviews · 2024Review
- Stress, inflammation, and resilience among patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma undergoing multimodal therapy: Current knowledge and future directions.Tzu chi medical journalReview
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
17 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
purposeAlthough beta-blockers (BBs) have been hypothesized to exert a beneficial effect on cancer survival through inhibition of beta-adrenergic signaling pathways, clinical data on this issue have been inconsistent. We investigated the impact of BBs on survival outcomes and efficacy of immunotherapy in patients with head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC), non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC), melanoma, or squamous cell carcinoma of the skin (skin SCC), independent of comorbidity status or cancer treatment regimen.
methodsPatients (N = 4,192) younger than 65 years with HNSCC, NSCLC, melanoma, or skin SCC treated at MD Anderson Cancer Center from 2010 to 2021 were included. Overall survival (OS), disease-specific survival (DSS), and disease-free survival (DFS) were calculated. Kaplan-Meier and multivariate analyses adjusting for age, sex, TNM staging, comorbidities, and treatment modalities were performed to assess the effect of BBs on survival outcomes.
resultsIn patients with HNSCC (n = 682), BB use was associated with worse OS and DFS (OS: adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 1.67; 95% CI, 1.06 to 2.62;
conclusionThe effect of BBs on cancer survival outcomes is heterogeneous and varies according to cancer type and immunotherapy status. In this study, BB intake was associated with worse DSS and DFS in patients with head and neck cancer not treated with immunotherapy, but not in patients with NSCLC or skin cancer.
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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.