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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jul 2011
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    This article was taken from yahoo.com News today. It is not meant to cause a disruption, but merely an interesting article on products many of us use. Not sure if there is a direct correlation or if this could even be old news.. Food for thought

    I'm interested to hear the opinions of some vets on this.
    (p.s. If this is in the wrong section, please move it)


    Breast Cancer Drug May Weaken Bones, Study Finds
    HealthDay - Tue Feb 7th, 2012 11:47 PM EST

    TUESDAY, Feb. 7 (HealthDay News) -- A drug used to prevent breast

    cancer in women at high risk for the disease appears to cause bone loss in

    some postmenopausal women, a new study finds.

    The drug, Aromasin (exemestane), has been shown to reduce the odds of

    breast cancer by 65 percent, but it also worsens bone density by about

    three times in older women who are taking it, Canadian researchers

    report.

    "The drug did affect bone density at the hip and spine," said lead

    researcher Dr. Angela Cheung, a senior scientist at the University Health

    Network in Toronto. "It does not affect everyone; about 65 percent of

    women have some bone loss."

    The fear of bone loss is not a reason not to take the drug, Cheung

    said. "You really need to pay attention to your bone health when you take

    this medication, especially for preventing breast cancer."

    However, for women who are at high risk for fractures, other drugs

    should be considered, she added.

    Women taking this drug should also be taking calcium and vitamin D

    supplements, and having their bone density monitored, Cheung said.

    An older drug, tamoxifen, actually builds bone, but it is not as

    effective at preventing breast cancer, she said. "But, for someone with

    healthy bones it is worthwhile taking the medication."

    Exemestane is an aromatase inhibitor and works by suppressing the

    female hormone estrogen. These drugs are standard treatment for

    postmenopausal women with early stage hormone-receptor-positive breast

    cancer.

    It had been speculated that exemestane, a third-generation aromatase

    inhibitor, might result in less bone loss than other similar drugs and

    might even stimulate bone formation.

    For the new study, Cheung's team looked at bone loss among the more

    than 4,500 women who took part in a trial that compared exemestane with a

    placebo.

    Among women taking the drug, the risk of developing breast cancer was

    lowered 65 percent, compared with women taking a placebo.

    Among the 351 women in whom bone loss was studied, the researchers

    found that after two years there was an 8 percent loss of cortical bone in

    women taking exemestane, compared with 1 percent in the placebo group.

    Cortical bone is the outer shell of bone that provides most of the bone

    support, and its loss accounts for about 80 percent of fractures in older

    people, the researchers noted.

    The findings were published in the Feb. 6 online edition of The

    Lancet Oncology .

    Dr. Stephanie Bernik, chief of surgical oncology at Lenox Hill Hospital

    in New York City, was somewhat cautious about the new research. She said

    that "the study needs longer follow-up to see if there is an increased

    risk of fracture."

    "This study doesn't mean that we should stop using these drugs," she

    said. "We certainly rely on aromatase inhibitors more than tamoxifen in

    postmenopausal women, because the survival benefit has been proven."

    The benefit of the drug outweighs that risk for most women, she said.

    However, if there is a family history of osteoporosis it may not be the

    best choice, Bernik said.

    More information

    For more on breast cancer, visit the

    American Cancer Society .
    Last edited by jasc; 02-08-2012 at 10:55 AM.

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