Breast Cancer

NEW YORK--What should have been good news for a woman whose family had a history of breast cancer--that she did not carry the breast cancer gene (BRCA1)--proved bittersweet, since the woman had had bilateral prophylactic mastectomies 5 years earlier.

LOS ANGELES--An aggressive 16-week, multidrug chemotherapy regimen afforded a survival advantage over six cycles of CAF (cyclophosphamide, Adriamycin, and fluorouracil) in 646 women with receptor-negative, node-positive breast cancer, preliminary results of an Intergroup study have shown.

Race does not appear to be a major factor in breast cancer survival when information on stage of disease, income level, education, and access to care also are reviewed, a number of studies show.

NEW YORK--About 300 breast cancer survivors and hundreds of family, friends, physicians, and supporters gathered at the Plaza Hotel for a luncheon to celebrate breast cancer survival.

SAN FRANCISCO--Approximately 6% of all women diagnosed with ovarian cancer have had a previous diagnosis of breast cancer, Jeffrey G. Schneider, MD, said at the annual conference of the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists.

The combination of vinorelbine tartrate (Navelbine) and paclitaxel (Taxol) appears promising for the treatment of patients with metastatic breast cancer, including some patients who had previously receivedanthracycline-based adjuvant therapy,

LOS ANGELES--Sequential chemotherapy including an anthracycline produced better overall and relapse-free survival in women with node-positive breast cancer (more than three nodes) than did an alternating schedule of the same drugs, Gianni Bonadonna, MD, of the Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Milan, reported at the ASCO annual meeting.

BOSTON--Radical mastectomy is no longer routine for women with breast cancer, but the indications for breast conservation are still being debated by surgeons who fear the risk of breast cancer recurrence. At the 48th Annual Cancer Symposium, sponsored by the Society of Surgical Oncologists, a panel of physicians discussed patient selection criteria for breast conservation surgery.

SAN ANTONIO--Final excisional margin status proved to be the strongest predictor of local recurrence in a study of more than 300 breast cancer patients treated with breast-conserving surgery and radiation, Melanie C. Smitt, MD, said at the opening general session of the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

TORONTO, Canada--Researchers have discovered that a high-fiber grain cultivated since the times of the ancient Egyptians may delay the growth of cancerous tumors. In studies conducted on rats, Lilian Thompson, PhD, of the University of Toronto, found that a component isolated from flaxseed reduced mammary tumor growth by more than 50%.

SAN ANTONIO--Three different regimens of vinorelbine tartrate (Navelbine) combined with established chemotherapeutic agents led to significant responses in up to 60% of patients with advanced or metastatic breast cancer, including previously treated patients.

PITTSBURGH--A study has begun to determine the effectiveness of tamoxifen (Nolvadex) in preventing osteoporosis in a group of women participating in the Breast Cancer Prevention Trial (BCPT), coordinated by the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP).

CHICAGO--Citing findings from radiological studies performed on more than 10,000 women, Paula Gordon, MD, suggests periodic ultrasound examination of the breast in addition to mammography for women at high risk of breast cancer and who have mammographically dense breasts.

PARIS, France--New ideas and applications for endocrine therapy in early breast cancer may provide a revolution in our thinking about the nature of the disease, said Dr. M. Baum, of The Royal Marsden Hospital, London. The efficacy of

If a woman smoked, contracted breast cancer, and was treated with radiation before 1980, her risk of lung cancer has been dramatically increased. Even if she did not smoke, her chances for lung

SAN ANTONIO--Primary chemotherapy successfully converted 29 of 47 mastectomy candidates to breast conservation in a French study reported at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

SAN FRANCISCO--Women with breast cancer are at higher risk of developing a second gynecologic cancer than women who do not have the disease, Eva Chalas, MD, reported at a poster session of the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists meeting. Close gynecologic monitoring in the first 3 years after a breast cancer diagnosis is essential, she said.

WASHINGTON--The National Institutes of Health, University of Utah, and Myriad Genetics, Inc. have resolved issues involving patenting of the BRCA1 breast cancer gene by agreeing that scientists from all three institutions should be named as joint inventors in current patent applications. The agreement also ensures that exclusive, worldwide commercial rights are retained by Myriad and its licensees, Eli Lilly and Company and Hybritech Incorporated.

SAN ANTONIO--Use of docetaxel (Taxotere) as palliative treatment of advanced breast cancer produced durable responses in almost 70% of patients, including three fourths of those with liver metastases, French researchers said at a

NEW YORK--The woman shyly lifted her sweater, and in halting English apologized for her old brassiere. The left cup was stuffed with a towel where her breast used to be. She had come to Cancer Care, Inc. in Manhattan for help.

SAN ANTONIO--Searches for high-risk markers may ultimately point the way toward the optimal use of breast-conserving surgery for ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS); early findings from one study, for example, suggest that a family history of breast cancer may militate against such surgery.

ATLANTA--In laboratory models, the "highest possible doses of chemotherapy" and a combination of agents are necessary to achieve curative therapy in breast cancer, Karen H. Antman, MD, said at the American Society of Clinical Oncology's (ASCO) Educational Conference. But when treating breast cancer with drugs that damage stem cells, "you may not be able

SAN ANTONIO--Identification of the "sentinel" lymph node can eliminate the need for total axillary node dissection in a substantial number of women with primary breast cancer, Peter D. Beitsch, MD, said at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

NEW YORK--Gospel singers, ministers, elected officials, breast cancer survivors, and the president and board of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center came to Harlem to celebrate, with music and soul food, the expansion of the Breast Examination Center of Harlem, a center that has screened more than 24,000 women for breast cancer since its opening in 1979.

SAN ANTONIO--Unresolved questions about accuracy and cost should limit the role of stereotactic core biopsy in breast cancer to low-suspicion lesions and a few other specific indications, advised Monica Morrow, MD, associate professor of surgery and director of clinical breast programs, Northwestern University Medical School.

WASHINGTON--At its most recent meeting, the National Cancer Advisory Board (NCAB) heard a report on the activities and accomplishments of the National Action Plan on Breast Cancer (NAPBC), as well as reports from two groups concerned about cancer research funding and grant applications.

In the heart of the Bible Belt, a North Carolina-based company is spreading the gospel that women need to know their bodies, regularly examine their breasts, and receive mammograms yearly after age 40.

New clinical research shows that a noninvasive test, the Breast Biophysical Examination (BBE), may help physicians more effectively detect breast cancer, as well as identify women who do not have cancer. The research, funded in part by the National Cancer Institute, was presented at the 17th Annual San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

Tamoxifen (Nolvadex), a nonsteroidal antiestrogen, was first approved by the FDA for the treatment of patients with breast cancer in 1978. Large clinical trials have demonstrated a recurrence-free and overall survival benefit

Tamoxifen (Nolvadex) is widely used in the treatment of breast cancer. It is effective in the management of both early stage and advanced disease. The recent comprehensive meta-analysis of systemic treatment in early breast cancer reported that tamoxifen reduced the annual odds of breast cancer recurrence by 25%, and the risk of death by 16%, compared with patients not treated with tamoxifen [1]. The benefits are even more pronounced in postmenopausal patients, with 29% decreases in recurrence and 20% reduction in the risk of death. The risk of contralateral primary breast cancer is also decreased by approximately 28% in women receiving adjuvant tamoxifen [2]. This has prompted its use in prevention trials; the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project Prevention trial (NSABP P1) is an ongoing trial randomizing women at high risk for breast cancer to receive tamoxifen or placebo. Tamoxifen's use in otherwise healthy women has brought attention to the few potential toxicities of the drug.