News You Can Use
To help you stay on top of the latest breast cancer-related research and findings, Y-ME brings you News You Can Use, a monthly summary of some of the latest on breast cancer research and studies. We welcome your feedback; please send e-mail to Bev Parker at: bparker@y-me.org.
For breast cancer news from previous months, visit the News You Can Use Archives.
April 2008
Many women unclear about breast cancer treatments
Only half the women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer clearly understand the risks and benefits of a mastectomy versus a breast-conserving lumpectomy plus radiation, even after they have one of the procedures, say researchers whose results appear in the latest online issue of the journal Health Services Research. If the woman is black or Hispanic, the chances are even less likely she has adequate information.
NSAIDs and breast cancer: A possible prevention and treatment strategy
Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) inhibit cyclooxygenase (COX) and thereby reduce prostaglandin synthesis. Abnormally upregulated COX and prostaglandins are features of breast cancer, so NSAIDs might have a role in treatment and prevention of the disease.
Hormone therapy interferes with breast cancer detection
Two tools used to detect breast cancer—mammograms and breast biopsies—are less effective in women who use combined hormone therapy (estrogen plus progestin) than in women who do not. The diminished ability to find cancers may persist for at least a year after women have discontinued therapy, according to a follow-up study of participants in the Women's Health Initiative.
Digital mammography superior to film mammography in some cases
For some women, digital mammography may be a better screening option than film mammography, according to newly published results from the Digital Mammographic Imaging Screening Trial. The results appear in the journal Radiology. The study found that digital mammography performed better than film mammography for pre- and perimenopausal women under age 50 with dense breasts.
Letrozole reduces risk of breast cancer recurrence and metastasis even if started years after tamoxifen
A multicenter phase III clinical trial reported that the drug letrozole (Femara) cuts the risk of breast cancer recurrence by 63 percent and the risk of cancer spread by 61 percent in postmenopausal women with early-stage disease who completed five years of tamoxifen therapy one to seven years earlier. The study was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Breast cancer leads to lost wages
Women being treated for early breast cancer lose about a fourth of their yearly income, according to a new survey published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
April 2008
