Breast Cancer : Latest Research

by National Institute on Aging

(Page 5 of 5)

Several new technologies offer hope for making future treatment easier for women with breast cancer. Using a special tool, doctors can today insert a miniature camera through the nipple and into a milk duct in the breast to examine the area for cancer. In the future, doctors may use this tool to deliver treatment.

Researchers are testing another technique to help women who have undergone weeks of conventional radiation therapy. Using a small catheter - a tube with a balloon tip - doctors can deliver tiny radioactive beads to a place on the breast where cancer tissue has been removed. This can reduce the therapy time to a matter of days.

New drug therapies also are on the horizon. Findings from several clinical trials show that the chemotherapy drug paclitaxel combined with the drugs cyclophosphamide and doxorubicin can help women with tumors that have spread to other parts of the body.

This mix of drugs may increase the length of time you will live or the length of time you will live without cancer. It may someday prove useful for some women with localized breast cancer after they have had surgery.

New research shows women with early-stage breast cancer who took the drug letrozole, an aromatase inhibitor, after they completed five years of tamoxifen therapy significantly reduced their risk of breast cancer recurrence.

Also, other new research found a test that can predict both the risk of breast cancer recurrence and who is most likely to benefit from chemotherapy such as letrozole.

Several methods show promise in preventing breast cancer. In October 1998, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, approved the drug tamoxifen to prevent cancer in high-risk women.

The approval of tamoxifen followed a clinical trial sponsored by the National Cancer Institute that included more than 13,000 pre-menopausal and post-menopausal women. All of the women were considered at high risk for breast cancer.

Tamoxifen and Raloxifene.

One group of women took the drug tamoxifen and another took a placebo - an inactive pill that looked like tamoxifen. The results of the study showed a 49 percent decrease in breast cancer among women who took tamoxifen.

Tamoxifen does have side effects. The most serious in some women are an increased risk of endometrial cancer - which is related to the inner mucous membrane of the uterus - and an increased risk of blood clots. Among 1,000 women taking tamoxifen for 5 years, 18 would be expected to develop endometrial cancer compared to 8 women not taking tamoxifen.

Recent evidence also indicates a possible increased risk of uterine sarcoma for some women. Women at high risk for breast cancer may want to consult their doctor to see if tamoxifen may help them.

Quiz

1. Tamoxifen is a drug that all women should use to prevent breast cancer.

FALSE is the correct answer. The Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, recommends tamoxifen as a way to reduce breast cancer in HIGH-RISK women. Women who are at high risk for breast cancer may want to consult their doctor to see if tamoxifen may be an appropriate treatment.

2. Tamoxifen can reduce the risk of breast cancer by almost half.

TRUE is the correct answer. The results of a 1998 study showed a 49 percent decrease in breast cancer among women who took the tamoxifen.

3. Some women experience side effects from taking tamoxifen.

TRUE is the correct answer. Tamoxifen does have side effects in some women. The most serious are an increased risk of endometrial cancer, which is related to the inner mucous membrane of the uterus, and an increased risk of blood clots.

About the Author

www.nia.nih.gov
NIA, one of the 27 Institutes and Centers of NIH, leads a broad scientific effort to understand the nature of aging and to extend the healthy, active years of life. In 1974, Congress granted authority to form NIA to provide leadership in aging research, training, health information dissemination, and other programs relevant to aging and older people.