The Role of Anesthetic Drugs and Statins in Prostate Cancer Recurrence: Starting at the Actual Knowledge and Walking through a New Paradigm

SIMPLE SUMMARY: The relationship between an anesthetic procedure and cancer is a common theme of various research papers and systematic reviews. Prostate cancer, although it has a high incidence, is one example for which we currently do not know the possible benefits of anesthetic techniques. Our article starts from the current knowledge of the influence of anesthetic drugs and anesthetic techniques, and we propose where we should go in the future to elucidate its role in prostate cancer recurrence. ABSTRACT: Prostate cancer has become a major health problem in men. Its incidence is increasing as the average age of the affected population tends to be higher. Of all the possible treatments, surgery is the gold standard in its treatment. Surgery produces a deregulation in the immune system that can favour the development of distant metastases. Different anesthetic techniques have raised the hypothesis that different anesthetic drugs influence tumor recurrence and prognosis. Some mechanisms are beginning to be understood by which halogenated agents in cancer patients and the use of opioids may negatively affect patients. In this document, we group together all the available evidence on how the different anesthetic drugs affect tumor recurrence in prostate cancer.