Antidepressants and breast-cancer risk. (News you can use).

We know very little about risk factors for breast cancer, and researchers are constantly looking for more of them. One hypothesis that was recently examined is the connection between taking anti-depressants and getting breast cancer. One family of antidepressants called tricyclic compounds may give us more information. Canadian women who took part in the National Enhanced Cancer Surveillance Study were randomly selected and matched to women with breast cancer. The study found that women who took tricyclic anti-depressants (like Elavil, Tofranil, and Norpramin, to mention a few) for at least two years, doubled their risk for breast cancer. The longer they took these antidepressants, the greater their risk.

But let's take another look at this hypothesis. When we look at cancer patients, we find that the more positive a person's attitude, the more likely they are to survive their cancer. Perhaps there's more of a connection between mood and a woman's risk for breast cancer rather than taking antidepressants alone, whether they're tricyclic compounds or other kinds. I'm not suggesting that if you're depressed and negative you will get breast cancer, but it could be one of many risk factors. In addition, all medications have side effects. What's become more clear to me over time in looking at all kinds of diseases is that some people have a predisposition to particular illnesses that won't affect someone else. Since there are many nutritional factors connected with depression (a need for more vitamin [B.sub.6] and magnesium to make serotonin, for instance), perhaps one approach would be to make more natural changes in your lifestyle rather than depend on antidepressant medications.

Cotterchio, M., et al. "Antidepressant medication use and breast cancer risk," Am J Epidemiol, 151(10), 2000.

Int'l Clin Nutr Rev, April 2001.