Prostate cancer pharmacoepidemiology : digoxin, aspirin and patient outcomes

Abstract

Pharmacoepidemiology is the study of the effects of medicines in a real-world population; combining pharmacology, the study of medicines, with epidemiology the study of diseases. Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed non-cutaneous malignancy in Irish men and the second most common cause of cancer death. This thesis contains the first pharmacoepidemiology studies to be carried out in a cohort of Irish prostate cancer patients. These studies were carried out using linked patient records from the National Cancer Registry of Ireland (NCRI) and prescription claims data from the Primary Care Reimbursement Services (PCRS) General Medical Services (GMS) scheme. Exposure to two medicines, digoxin and aspirin, commonly used for the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular disease were examined in relation to prostate cancer patient outcomes.