Reina Haque, PhD, MPH, discusses her recent investigation into the link between antihypertensive treatment and extended survival in patients with metastatic breast cancer. Given the findings, she calls for increased collaboration between oncology, cardiology, and primary care specialties to optimize health outcomes.

This transcript has been edited for clarity.

Welcome back to PeerPOV: The Pulse on Medicine, a podcast series by Physician’s Weekly showcasing the latest insights from your peers across the medical community.

This week, Dr. Reina Haque discusses how effective hypertension management may improve survival outcomes in women with advanced and metastatic breast cancer.

I’m Reina Haque. I’m a senior research scientist in the Department of Research and Evaluation at Kaiser Permanente Southern California. And I’m also a professor of health system sciences at the Kaiser Permanente School of Medicine. The focus of my research is on cancer epidemiology, survivorship, and pharmacoepidemiology. I thank you for taking interest in this study today.

We looked at whether treating high blood pressure more effectively could improve survival for women with advanced or metastatic breast cancer. Our study followed over 1,300 adult women treated for metastatic breast cancer in Southern California, who were diagnosed from 2008 to 2020. Then, we followed them through 2021 for a maximum of 13 years of follow-up.

We were able to track these study subjects over time using the comprehensive electronic medical records of Kaiser Permanente. I think a really strong advantage of the study is that we had a diverse cohort. The women came from different backgrounds, and nearly half were women of color. Almost half already had high blood pressure when they were diagnosed with cancer.

We used a study design called an observational cohort study. We used health and pharmacy records to compare women who took only one type of blood pressure medication with those who took more than one type. Then, we identified subjects who had a lower risk of death, and whether w omen’s blood pressure stayed within a healthy range. We also took into account other factors such as age, cancer treatments, other health conditions, and how often the women saw their doctors.

We found that managing high blood pressure may help women with advanced breast cancer live longer. We also found that women who took more than one type of blood pressure medication were much less likely to die than those taking just one type. We determined that using more than one medication type to treat high blood pressure was linked to a 38% lower risk of dying. This protective effect was even stronger among Hispanic patients, and this lower risk was also suggested in Black women as well.

Many women with advanced breast cancer also have other health issues such as high blood pressure, which is very common, and these issues may not always get enough attention. Our study shows that treating chronic conditions like high blood pressure may help women live longer, especially women of color who often have worse cancer outcomes.

These findings really do matter. Women who took more than one type of blood pressure medication had a 38% lower risk of dying than those who took only one type, and this protective effect was strongest among Latinas and Black patients. This is important because high blood pressure increases the risk of stroke, heart attacks, and other health problems.

This benefit was even stronger for women who took their medications regularly. In this group, the risk of death was reduced by more than half.

In terms of the clinical implications, our findings show that treating other health problems like high blood pressure is an important part of caring for women with advanced breast cancer. Our research highlights the need for doctors in cancer, heart, primary care, and other areas to work together. Doctors should make sure to treat high blood pressure as a part of cancer care and not just focus on the cancer itself.

There seems to be a significant knowledge gap about outcomes in patients with metastatic breast cancer, so I feel that our study addresses this gap. I am planning more research on this topic, specifically how treating comorbidities would be important among women with cancer. Amongst women with advanced cancer, given advances in treatment, they’re living longer, but they also have additional chronic health problems that need to be addressed. I hope that in the future we can study how managing diabetes or high cholesterol can better survival in such women.

Our project really highlights the need for doctors in oncology, cardiology, and primary care areas to work together to manage these patients. Ultimately, I think that will have the best outcome in improving survival.

Thanks for listening. Stay tuned for next week’s episode. To hear more, follow PeerPOV: The Pulse on Medicine on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Amazon Music.

Reina Haque, PhD, MPH

Let us know what you thought of this week’s episode on X: @physicianswkly

Want to share your medical expertise, research, or unique experience in medicine on the podcast? Email us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Physician’s Weekly, their employees, and affiliates.

Dr. MedLaw returns to discuss the important steps physicians should take when they find that another doctor charged with their patient’s care has made an error—and what legal consequences might follow if they fail to report it.

Let us know what you thought of this week’s episode on X: @physicianswkly

Want to share your medical expertise, research, or unique experience in medicine on the podcast? Email us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Physician’s Weekly, their employees, and affiliates.

Dimitri A. Christakis, MD, MPH, discusses the clinical implications of a recent study showing that adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities have higher rates of anxiety and depression, pharmacologic utilization, and cost barriers compared to the general population.

Dimitri A. Christakis, MD, MPH

Professor of Pediatrics

Pediatrician

Chief Health Officer

Let us know what you thought of this week’s episode on X: @physicianswkly

Want to share your medical expertise, research, or unique experience in medicine on the podcast? Email us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Physician’s Weekly, their employees, and affiliates.

Shyam Sundaresh, MD, a primary care physician and obesity medicine specialist, discusses his approach to managing obesity in older adults, including diagnostic tools, medication safety, and more.

Shyam Sundaresh, MD

Let us know what you thought of this week’s episode on X: @physicianswkly

Want to share your medical expertise, research, or unique experience in medicine on the podcast? Email us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Physician’s Weekly, their employees, and affiliates.

Heather M. Snyder, PhD, discusses key findings from the US Pointer study, a large US-based clinical trial in which structured support, rather than self-guided lifestyle change, significantly benefited participants.

She shares how clinicians can integrate the findings into routine care to help patients improve cardiometabolic health and reduce dementia risk.

Heather M. Snyder, PhD

Disclosures: Heather M. Snyder, PhD, has no relevant financial relationships or conflicts of interest to disclose. Dr. Snyder is a full-time employee of the Alzheimer’s Association; her spouse is an employee at Abbott Labs in an unrelated field.

Let us know what you thought of this week’s episode on X: @physicianswkly

Want to share your medical expertise, research, or unique experience in medicine on the podcast? Email us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Physician’s Weekly, their employees, and affiliates.

Dr. MedLaw returns with advice for doctors to maintain anonymity and professionalism online to avoid potential legal and employment repercussions.

She covers two main topics: the potential for personal social media posts to result in job termination and the discoverability of such posts in medical malpractice cases.

Let us know what you thought of this week’s episode on X: @physicianswkly

Want to share your medical expertise, research, or unique experience in medicine on the podcast? Email us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Physician’s Weekly, their employees, and affiliates.

Editorial board member Alex McDonald, MD, returns for a discussion about science communication with Jess Steier, DRPH, PMP, of the Unbiased Science podcast.

In part 2 of their conversation, they discuss how simple, clear messaging can be the most effective tool when addressing vaccine hesitancy with patients.

Listen to part 1 here.

Alex McDonald, MD

Jess Steier, DRPH, PMP

Let us know what you thought of this week’s episode on X: @physicianswkly

Want to share your medical expertise, research, or unique experience in medicine on the podcast? Email us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Physician’s Weekly, their employees, and affiliates.

Editorial board member Alex McDonald, MD, returns for a discussion about science communication with Jess Steier, DRPH, PMP, of the Unbiased Science podcast.

In part 1 of their conversation, they explore how a “connection, not correction” approach can help deescalate exam room encounters and foster a safe space for patients to ask difficult questions.

Alex McDonald, MD

Jess Steier, DRPH, PMP

Let us know what you thought of this week’s episode on X: @physicianswkly

Want to share your medical expertise, research, or unique experience in medicine on the podcast? Email us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Physician’s Weekly, their employees, and affiliates.

Aatif M. Husain, MD, provides social context for a recent analysis showing that inaccurate TikTok videos about epilepsy garnered significantly more engagement than physician-led videos. He also shares how clinicians can combat misinformation, both online and in the exam room.

Read the full Q&A here.

Aatif M. Husain, MD

Let us know what you thought of this week’s episode on X: @physicianswkly

Want to share your medical expertise, research, or unique experience in medicine on the podcast? Email us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Physician’s Weekly, their employees, and affiliates.

Dr. MedLaw returns to discuss non-compete agreements. She walks through how courts evaluate non-competes in the context of medical practice, and what doctors should consider before signing them.

Let us know what you thought of this week’s episode on X: @physicianswkly

Want to share your medical expertise, research, or unique experience in medicine on the podcast? Email us at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

Any views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) and/or participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, policy, or position of Physician’s Weekly, their employees, and affiliates.