Chemotherapy-induced anemia and risk of breast cancer recurrence.Patients with breast cancer who developed anemia during chemotherapy had nearly three times the risk of local recurrence as those who did not, according to a study in the April 1 issue of Clinical Cancer Research, published by the American Association for Cancer Research Wikipedia is not the place for advertisement or self-advertising. The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is an organization based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, that focuses on all aspects of cancer research including basic, clinical and translational . Peter Dubsky, MD, and his colleagues from the Austrian Breast and Colorectal Cancer Study Group examined data from a randomized clinical trial randomized clinical trial, n a clinical study where volunteer participants with comparable characteristics are randomly assigned to different test groups to compare the efficacy of therapies. comparing adjuvant hormonal treatment and tamoxifen tamoxifen (təmŏk`sĭfĕn'), synthetic hormone used in the treatment of breast cancer. Introduced in 1978, tamoxifen is used to prevent recurrences of cancer in women who have already undergone surgery to remove their tumors. with the standard treatment of cyclophosphamide cyclophosphamide /cy·clo·phos·pha·mide/ (-fos´fah-mid) a cytotoxic alkylating agent of the nitrogen mustard group; used as an antineoplastic, as an immunosuppressant to prevent transplant rejection, and to treat some diseases , methotrexate and 5-fluorouracil (CMF). All women in the trial were premenopausal pre·me·no·paus·al adj. Of or relating to the years or the stage of life immediately before the onset of menopause. premenopausal adjective and had positive estrogen and/or progesterone receptor status. Patients who underwent breast-conserving surgery received mandatory radiation. Radiation was optional in women who underwent modified radical mastectomy mod·i·fied radical mastectomy n. Surgical removal of the entire breast and the lymphatic-bearing tissue in the armpit. modified radical mastectomy . The researchers focused on anemia data from the 424 patients in the CMF group, as the rates of anemia among those who received the hormonal treatment were low. They examined local relapse-free survival, relapse-free survival and overall survival. In addition to the absence of anemia, other factors that significantly increased local relapse-free survival were younger age at diagnosis and negative lymph node status. Any relationship between anemia and tumor size, postoperative radiation or type of surgery did not have an effect on local relapse-free survival, the researchers said. No difference in overall survival was evident, but the research team did not expect one; follow-up of 10 to 15 years would be needed to observe any significant differences, they said. For more information, visit www.aacr.org. Source: American Association for Cancer Research This edition of Health was prepared by Meghan Washington. |
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