Breast Cancer News:

Study: Drug Reduces Invasive Breast Cancer in Postmenopausal Women With Osteoporosis

A drug approved for the treatment of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women reduced the incidence of invasive breast cancer by 66% among such women, according to a study presented October 29 at the 19th European Society of Medical Oncology Congress in Vienna, Austria.

The drug, raloxifene (Evista®), is a selective estrogen receptor modulator.

The study involved 4,011 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis. Patients received either a placebo or 60 milligrams of raloxifene over eight years. Those who received raloxifene experienced a 66% reduction in the incidence of invasive breast cancer.

The researchers noted that raloxifene appeared to reduce the risk of invasive breast cancer regardless of whether women had received prior hormonal therapy. There was no significant difference in the reduction of invasive breast cancer compared to placebo between women who had received prior hormonal therapy (occurrence of invasive breast cancer reduced by 71%) and those who had not received prior hormonal therapy (64%).

Patients who received raloxifene were twice as likely to experience blood clots compared to patients who received placebo. Hot flushes and leg cramps were more frequent among patients who received raloxifene versus placebo in the first four years of treatment, but not in years five through eight.

Source: Medical Week staff, week of Novmeber 13, 2004