Hypertension is one of the most common diseases responsible for death.
There are five classes of medication for the treatment of hypertension, including those
which have increasing prescription ratings year after year; angiotensin receptors
blockers (ARBs) and calcium channel blockers (CCBs). Like all medications, CCBs
were questioned about their long-term effects. Due to the important role of calcium
(Ca2+) in cell physiology and apoptosis, investigators started to follow up patients using
CCBs for cancers, especially breast cancer. Theories were consistent about the
blockade of cytoplasmic Ca2+ and failure of apoptosis. There have been a lot of studies
(cohorts, case-control and observational studies) in this area. Studies with a small
sample size and short-term follow-up reported that the use of CCBs increases the risk
of cancer, whereas larger studies and meta-analyses were in favor of CCBs. In
conclusion, CCBs are very important agents in hypertension, arrhythmia and angina
treatment. In theory, they may seem to inhibit apoptosis and increase cancer growth but
with the right consideration of patients’ characteristics, time of use and age of the
patient at the onset of the treatment, they are considered safe and efficient drugs unless
studies with larger sample size and long-term follow-up claim opposite.
Keywords: Angiotensin receptors blockers, calcium channel blockers, breast
cancer, apoptosis, hypertension, arrhythmia, angina treatment.
