SynthesisESMO open2021
Beta-blockers in early-stage breast cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in ESMO open, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 24 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
24 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 44 citations in OpenAlex.
- Survival benefit of concurrent beta-blocker use in cancer patients treated with radiotherapy: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Medicine · 2026Pooled it
- Beta-blocker use and breast cancer outcomes: a meta-analysis.Breast cancer research and treatment · 2024Pooled it
- A Neuron Projection Guidance Signature Associates with Immune-Cold Tumor Microenvironment and Poor Outcomes in Breast Cancer.Annals of surgical oncology · 2026Article
- Hypertension, use of antihypertensive medications and breast cancer survival among Black women.Breast cancer research : BCR · 2026Article
- Key role of the autonomic nervous system in breast cancer (Review).Experimental and therapeutic medicine · 2026Review
- Genetic insights revealed ADRB1 as potential target for clear cell renal cell carcinoma.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Article
- S- and R-Carvedilol Prevent Benzo(a)pyrene-Induced Lung Carcinogenesis.Thoracic cancer · 2025Article
- Insights Into Heart-Tumor Interactions in Heart Failure.Circulation research · 2025Review
- The Impact of Beta Blockers on Survival in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Cancers · 2025Review
- Oncobiomics: Leveraging Microbiome Translational Research in Immuno-Oncology for Clinical-Practice Changes.Biomolecules · 2025Review
- Nerves at Play: The Peripheral Nervous System in Extracranial Malignancies.Cancer discovery · 2025Review
- Cardioprotection for radiation-induced heart disease in breast cancer patients.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2025Review
- The impact of β-blockers on outcomes of immune checkpoint inhibitors therapy in advanced lung cancer: a multicenter real-world study.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Article
- Epidemiology, risk factors and mechanism of breast cancer and atrial fibrillation.Cardio-oncology (London, England) · 2024Review
- Use of beta-blockers in patients with ductal carcinoma in situ and risk of invasive breast cancer recurrence: a Swedish retrospective cohort study.Breast cancer research and treatment · 2024Observational
- Saudi pharmaceutical journal : SPJ : the official publication of the Saudi Pharmaceutical Society · 2023Article
- Breast cancer and neurotransmitters: emerging insights on mechanisms and therapeutic directions.Oncogene · 2023Review
- Activation of β-Adrenoceptors Promotes Lipid Droplet Accumulation in MCF-7 Breast Cancer Cells via cAMP/PKA/EPAC Pathways.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Article
- Using administrative healthcare data to evaluate drug repurposing opportunities for cancer: the possibility of using beta-blockers to treat breast cancer.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2023Article
- Neuroimmune crosstalk and its impact on cancer therapy and research.Discover oncology · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 4 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPreclinical and retrospective studies suggest that beta-blockers are active against breast cancer. We carried out a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess the impact of beta-blockers on the outcomes of patients with early-stage breast cancer.
methodsA systematic literature search was performed to identify studies comparing outcomes of patients with early-stage breast cancer according to beta-blocker use (yes versus no). The primary endpoint was recurrence-free survival (RFS), defined as the occurrence of breast cancer recurrence or death. Secondary objectives were pathologic complete response (pCR), breast cancer recurrence, breast cancer-specific mortality and overall survival (OS). Hazard ratios (HRs) or odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were extracted from each study and a pooled analysis with the random-effect model was conducted. The Higgins' I-squared test was used to quantify heterogeneity. Egger's test was applied to assess publication bias. All P values were two-sided and considered significant if ≤0.05.
resultsOverall, 13 studies were included as follows: RFS (6), pCR (2), breast cancer recurrence (6), breast cancer-specific mortality (7) and OS (5). The use of beta-blockers was associated with a significant RFS improvement in the overall population (N = 21 570; HR 0.73; 95% CI, 0.56-0.96; P = 0.025) and in patients with triple-negative disease (N = 1212; HR 0.53; 95% CI, 0.35-0.81; P = 0.003). No significant differences in terms of pCR (N = 1554; OR 0.77; 95% CI, 0.44-1.36; P = 0.371), breast cancer recurrence (N = 37 957; OR 0.66; 95% CI, 0.42-1.03; P = 0.065), breast cancer-specific mortality (N = 64 830; HR 0.77; 95% CI, 0.56-1.08; P = 0.130) or OS (N = 103 065; HR 1.03; 95% CI, 0.87-1.23; P = 0.692) were observed according to beta-blocker use. DISCUSSION: In this meta-analysis, beta-blocker use was associated with a longer RFS in patients with early-stage breast cancer, with a more pronounced effect observed in those with triple-negative disease. Beta-blockers arise as an interesting option to be explored in prospective studies for patients with early-stage breast cancer.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic 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 Socratic graph.