ED and Melanoma

Erectile dysfunction, a condition that affects the sexual performance of a man, is prevalent among men. Erectile dysfunction makes a man have premature ejaculations. A man could also experience no erections or excessively long-lasting erections due to erectile dysfunctions. Over the years, scientists have found that a multitude of conditions could affect and cause ED in men of every age.

ED is not incurable. In fact, many men have found that using prescribed ED drugs could help them with their issues in the bedroom. Some of these drugs include Viagra, Levitra, and Cialis. Critics of the drugs usually insinuate that these ED drugs cause cancer, specifically melanoma. To test out whether this theory is true, scientists conducted a study to test the relationship between melanoma and ED.

ED and Melanoma: How are they related?

Opponents of ED drugs hypothesize that some ingredients within ED drugs make men more susceptible to developing cancer. To test out this theory, a group of Swedish scientists decided to look at the figures of several institutes.

The research team, led by Dr. Stacy Loed MD of the NYU Langone Medical Clinic, dug into the Swedish registers for melanoma, cancer and prescribed drugs for records between 2006 and 2012. The group checked the melanoma, and prescribed drugs register to ensure that they could draw a relationship between the two. ED drugs are typically prescribed in the states that allow them. Loeb and her team also examined the national cancer register to identify any link between other forms of cancer and ED drugs.

The team that conducted this research sought to explain the supposed link between ED drugs and melanoma. In the scientific community, Ed drugs are said to be linked to melanoma because the two interact in the body. ED drugs have substances called PDE5 inhibitors. These inhibitors are said to affect the pathways that usually facilitate the development of ED. As such, the team wanted to prove that:

·         PDE5 inhibitors cause melanoma

·         PDE5 have no effect on any other forms of cancer4

·         The dosage and type of PDE5 inhibitor found in different drugs has an effect on melanoma development (a previous study, done in 2014, had tested the relationship between ED drugs and melanoma but had not taken these two factors into consideration)

Loeb and her team analyzed the data between the three registers and compiled some of the following data.

What the Study Showed

The team that conducted the more recent study found out that there was indeed a statistical relationship between those men who had melanoma and those who used ED drugs. Men who had PDE5 inhibitors prescriptions were 20% more likely to develop melanoma than their counterparts who did not have ED drugs. When the team investigated these findings, they realized that the PDE5 in ED drugs did not actually cause the melanoma. Rather, a majority of men who were already at risk of developing melanoma suffered from ED. The team concluded that this similarity was because ED and melanoma shared common risk factors.

Next, the researchers studied the relationship between melanoma development and the inhibitors in ED drugs. They found that the likelihood of developing early stage melanoma decreased with increased intake of PDE5 inhibitors. Similarly, ED drugs only affected stage 0 and stage 1 melanoma. The type of inhibitor had no effect on melanoma development. Also, the team found no evidence that the PDE5 inhibitors caused the melanoma. On the contrary, Loeb and her team found that the relationship between melanoma and PDE5 extended to other forms of cancer like basal cell carcinoma (skin cancer).

Dr. Alexander Pastuszak, a urologist at the Baylor School of Medicine, who was not involved in the study, called the results ’inconclusive.’ “They won’t change the way I operate my practice.”

 

One of the drugs in the test, Cialis, is also called the weekend pill, mainly because it boosts sexual endurance for up to 36 hours. Cialis is a form of tadalafil prescribed to men who have a hard time maintaining an erection. Cialis does not cause arousal in men; it only stimulates it. For more information go to http://edguidance.com/cialis/