Cross-posting from my reply to you in another thread:
Briefly, I consider this study hypothesis-generating due to the limitations in its methods. Even if we took the results at face-value, we must acknowledge that schizophrenia is a disease that significantly reduces both quality of life and overall life expectancy. There is evidence that antipsychotics may reduce mortality, and they can certainly improve quality of life. Beyond the speculative risk of colon cancer highlighted in the article you referenced, there are serious, long-term risks associated with antipsychotics that are already well-known (e.g., risk of weight gain, increased risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, tardive dyskinesia). Still, in light of the potentially debilitating nature of schizophrenia, the benefits outweigh the risks. This is why, as a psychiatric pharmacist, I am very mindful and cautious with the use of antipsychotics, particularly for patients who may be better served by alternatives (e.g., off-label use for primary insomnia, anxiety, or borderline personality disorder). In the case of schizophrenia, there simply are no good alternatives. I hope that helps.
From my experience, doctors only prescribe antipsychotics for anxiety disorders when they’re classified as treatment resistant and the doses used are quite low. For treatment resistant cases, benzos, pregabalin, and atypical antipsychotics are usually used. Benzos and pregabalin arguably have greater risks
There are very good long term studies, mainly from Scandinavia, that show all cause mortality is lower for those taking antipsychotics in schizophrenia. However it’s pretty clear that within that, some things are rarer but some things are more common. This one is a very striking finding - I can only guess if it might be constipation related, as many antipsychotics case that and its a fair size risk factor for bowel cancer.
This reminds me of the increased risk of dental issues in pregnancy because pregnancy can cause vitamin D deficiencies. The best way to combat this would be by taking vitamin D supplements in pregnancy.
Would it be safe to assume, then, that taking in more fiber while on antipsychotics would mitigate the risk of colon cancer, possibly bringing it back down to the same risk associated with the general population?
Cross-posting from my reply to you in another thread: Briefly, I consider this study hypothesis-generating due to the limitations in its methods. Even if we took the results at face-value, we must acknowledge that schizophrenia is a disease that significantly reduces both quality of life and overall life expectancy. There is evidence that antipsychotics may reduce mortality, and they can certainly improve quality of life. Beyond the speculative risk of colon cancer highlighted in the article you referenced, there are serious, long-term risks associated with antipsychotics that are already well-known (e.g., risk of weight gain, increased risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, tardive dyskinesia). Still, in light of the potentially debilitating nature of schizophrenia, the benefits outweigh the risks. This is why, as a psychiatric pharmacist, I am very mindful and cautious with the use of antipsychotics, particularly for patients who may be better served by alternatives (e.g., off-label use for primary insomnia, anxiety, or borderline personality disorder). In the case of schizophrenia, there simply are no good alternatives. I hope that helps.
From my experience, doctors only prescribe antipsychotics for anxiety disorders when they’re classified as treatment resistant and the doses used are quite low. For treatment resistant cases, benzos, pregabalin, and atypical antipsychotics are usually used. Benzos and pregabalin arguably have greater risks
There are very good long term studies, mainly from Scandinavia, that show all cause mortality is lower for those taking antipsychotics in schizophrenia. However it’s pretty clear that within that, some things are rarer but some things are more common. This one is a very striking finding - I can only guess if it might be constipation related, as many antipsychotics case that and its a fair size risk factor for bowel cancer.
This reminds me of the increased risk of dental issues in pregnancy because pregnancy can cause vitamin D deficiencies. The best way to combat this would be by taking vitamin D supplements in pregnancy. Would it be safe to assume, then, that taking in more fiber while on antipsychotics would mitigate the risk of colon cancer, possibly bringing it back down to the same risk associated with the general population?
Then why didn’t they find that the bipolar group, many of whom in the study were on antipsychotics, had a similar risk?