Chemotherapy drug could have a serious and surprising side effect, study finds
A chemotherapy drug could cause "significant" hearing loss among cancer survivors, according to a study from the University of South Florida and Indiana University.
Researchers tracked 100 testicular cancer survivors who received a chemo drug called cisplatin for an average of 14 years, as a press release from USF noted.
Among the participants, who averaged 48 years of age, 78% of them reported experiencing "significant difficulties in everyday listening situations."
This was reportedly the first study to assess potential hearing loss among cancer survivors.
"Patients receiving cisplatin-based chemotherapy are at high risk for permanent hearing loss, and for some, that hearing loss will progress years after chemo treatment," lead author Victoria Sanchez, associate professor in the USF Health Department of Otolaryngology Head & Neck Surgery, told Fox News Digital in an email.
"This hearing loss affects how people hear in everyday life, like a noisy restaurant or other social gatherings."
Cisplatin is a type of chemotherapy drug that contains the metal platinum, according to the National Cancer Institute’s website.
The IV-administered drug is approved to treat bladder cancer, ovarian cancer and testicular cancer, the NCI states, either alone or in combination with other medications.
Higher doses of cisplatin were linked to more severe cases of hearing loss, the researchers found.
Those at highest risk included patients with poor heart health or high blood pressure.
"It was surprising to see that cardiovascular conditions are related to increased hearing loss and progression of hearing loss, which speaks to the need for patients to consider healthy lifestyle choices to help protect their ears," Sanchez said.
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The ears are especially vulnerable to the drug because they cannot filter it out, according to the USF researchers.
"This leads to inflammation and the destruction of sensory cells that are critical for coding sound, causing permanent hearing loss that can progressively get worse well after cisplatin treatments are completed," the release stated.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved cisplatin for testicular cancer treatment in 1978, according to the NIH.
Packaging labels for the drug warn of the potential for ototoxicity, which involves damage to the inner ear as a side effect of medication.
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"Hearing loss can be unilateral or bilateral and tends to become more frequent and severe with repeated doses," the packaging stated.
"Decreased ability to hear normal conversational tones may occur."
It is unclear whether the drug-induced ototoxicity is reversible, according to the packaging.
Based on the findings, the researcher recommends that cancer patients talk to their health care providers about possible hearing loss as a side effect of treatment and to receive hearing evaluations while receiving chemotherapy.
"Check your hearing if you have any concerns," Sanchez advised.
"If hearing loss is identified, treatment and help for hearing loss is available. Health care providers can talk to patients about their risk of hearing loss and a plan for survivorship."
Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Medical Center and a Fox News medical contributor, noted that cisplatin is a "highly effective treatment" for testicular cancer, improving the cure rate from 10% to 90% when used in combination with other drugs.
"[The drug has a] very high degree of side effects, [including] hearing loss, which is very well-known, in up to 80% of patients," Siegel, who was not involved in the study, told Fox News Digital via email.
A cost-benefit analysis should be performed for all treatments, the doctor advised.
"Since this is a potentially deadly cancer, the benefits are generally worth the side effects, until newer, less toxic and equally effective treatments are developed," Siegel said.
The main limitation of the study, according to Sanchez, is that all of the patients were very similar — males treated for testicular cancer.
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"We need to conduct additional studies to understand women treated with cisplatin and for other types of cancers," she said.
The goal is that the research will lead to alternatives in chemotherapy treatment plans and preventative medications to reduce the risk of hearing loss, according to USF.
The American Cancer Society warns on its website of the potential for chemotherapy drugs to impact hearing.
"High doses of chemotherapy (especially ones that are platinum-based) and radiation to the head, ear or brain can cause damage and hearing problems in one or both ears," the ACS stated.
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"Hearing loss related to cancer treatment is often permanent (doesn’t go away), but a hearing aid might help."
Fox News Digital reached out to the FDA, the ACS and several manufacturers of branded cisplatin medications requesting comment.