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Home › Relationships

Relationships | 10/30/2008 8:47 am

STUDY: Negative Side Effects of Breast Cancer May Be Good News

By The Staff of wowOwow

Battling breast cancer is a struggle.

The effects from chemotherapy and preventative medications can be daunting physically and emotionally. However, new research may help soothe breast cancer patients coping with rough treatments.

A new study in Lancet Oncology suggests that patients who experience negative side effects from breast cancer medication (such as hot flashes and joint aches) may be less prone to breast cancer recurrence versus patients who do not experience negative side effects from their treatments. Researchers studied breast cancer survivors who were receiving either tamoxifen or anastrozole as part of an adjuvant treatment. The breast cancer drugs are commonly used to help prevent recurrence and also the development of new cancers in the other breast. Patients complain of side effects including vasomotor symptoms (hot flashes, night sweats, day sweats) and joint pain.

ABC News reports the study found if a woman experienced menopausal symptoms from her medication, her chances of breast cancer returning decreased 16 percent. If a woman experienced joint aches, her chance of breast cancer returning decreased about 41 percent. If the patient experienced both menopausal side effects and joint pains, the odds of recurrence decreased by about 47 percent.

The researchers couldn’t explain why the negative side effects were linked to more effective treatment.

Both drugs work in combating breast cancer recurrence by decreasing the effects of estrogen in the body. Tamoxifen has been used for more than 30 years to treat breast cancer. It works by interfering with the transfer of estrogen. Elevated levels of the female hormone have been linked to increased breast cancer risk. Anastrozole is a popular drug that works by reducing the amount of estrogen circulating in the body.

Click here to read more about the study.

Read more about: Breast Cancer, Chemotherapy, Drugs, Health, Medicine, News, Science

4 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

HA BIBI
How about a cure so women don’t have to suffer cancer or it’s debilitating side effects!
By HA BIBI on 10/30/2008 3:34 pm
gulliver fourmyle
google breast cancer rate by nation—-USA 21.2/100k—-but Japan 8.6? what’s up doc? seems ‘fish/soy/veggie’ diet a woman’s best protection. as for ‘where’s the cure’? that, cruelly, goes to Big Pharma—-and the ‘medical-elite’—-to expect either to lose $$$ w/a ‘cure’? very naive—-any ‘cure’ will Not come from Big Pharma’s BS studies—-rather some independent Medical School research—-and even then, you may expect the FDA (thanks to Reagan a dupe for Big Pharma) to stymie such, for years—-Elaine, herein lies a perfect example of why ‘socialism’ is no threat, vs. ‘Show Me the $$$’. there is the threat—-
By gulliver fourmyle on 10/30/2008 4:48 pm
Juanita Ward
Thank you, no-one else could have said it, better?
By Juanita Ward on 10/30/2008 10:33 pm
gulliver fourmyle
And thank you—-i do attempt helping in my ‘perhaps-abrasive’ way—-i have not the proper reference for this bit on breast cancer, but i recall my ex, years ago showing me an article on breast-feeding mothers also having a lower risk of breast cancer—-another bit picked-up over decades linked higher risk to women using anti-perspirents—-the ‘jist’ was that arm-pit lymph-system sweat, as tears, excretes toxins—-many carcinogenic—-de-oderents that allowed freely sweating were deemed ok—- however, i would wonder on that, given the ‘chemical-elite’s’ propensity to skew research on toxins—-the bi-phenol used in plastics being a good example—-Canada and others are banning plastic baby bottles—-so, ‘Let them drink Perrier?’ i stopped anti-p’s after that, and i sweat a lot—-so, 2 showers/day? whoops this entire nation’s water table is now full of MTBE, thanks to papa bush—-it not only ‘leaches’ through soil, also skin—-Boy do i miss long hot baths—-now? i’m in/out of hot shower fast—-thank you so much—-kinda tired of being seen as the ‘bad-boy’—-
By gulliver fourmyle on 10/31/2008 2:31 pm