News - Health News
New breast cancer drug enters market
Posted: Jun 4, 2011 1:26 PM by Dr. Anya Winslow
CHICAGO (AP) - Millions of women at high risk of breast cancer because of genes, family history or other reasons have a new option for preventing the disease.
A big study finds that a drug cut the risk of developing breast cancer by more than half in women who were past menopause. The drug is exemestane (ex-eh-MESS'-tane), sold by Pfizer Inc. as Aromasin (ah-ROHM'-ah-sin) and in generic form.
Two drugs are already available for preventing breast cancer - tamoxifen (tah-MOCKS'-eh-fen) and raloxifene (rah-LOCKS'-eh-feen). But these are unpopular because they can cause blood clots and uterine cancer. The study did not find these side effects with the newer drug.
Results were discussed Saturday at a cancer conference in Chicago and published in the New England Journal of Medicine
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
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