Safety of tumor necrosis factor inhibitor therapy in patients with a prior malignancy

Aim There is insufficient evidence to determine whether tumor necrosis factor inhibitor ( TNF i) therapy is safe in patients with a recent history of cancer. The purpose of our study was to explore the influence of TNF i therapy on cancer‐related outcomes in patients who had undergone curative cancer treatment. Methods The medical records of 814 patients who received TNF i therapy at a single rheumatology clinic, between June 2005 and May 2014 were retrospectively reviewed. Among them, the data from patients having received anticancer treatment before starting TNF i therapy were collected and cancer‐related outcomes were evaluated. Results Twenty patients of 814 had a history of malignancy before initiating TNF i therapy. Over the duration of TNF i exposure (median, 54.0 months; interquartile range [ IQR ], 23.25–72.0 months), there was no recurrence of the previous cancer. In eight patients with early‐stage cancer, TNF i therapy was initiated < 5 years after conclusion of previous anticancer treatments. Notably, over the duration of the ongoing treatment follow‐up period (median, 33.5 months; IQR , 13.0–75.75 months), cancer recurrence was also not identified. Conclusion TNF i therapy in patients with a history of an early‐stage localized cancer may not be contraindicated, even if TNF i is initiated < 5 years from completion of curative cancer treatment.