Standard treatment for breast cancer still involves a combination of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. In the past few years, innovations in breast cancer treatment have added new options for breast cancer patients. Genetic advances have both helped with preventive treatment and with better targeting tumors in existing cases, and other drug treatments show promise in helping slow the advance of cancer cells.
Genetic Testing
About 5 to 10 percent of breast cancer cases are linked to genetic alterations called BRCA 1 and BRCA 2. These genes are commonly found in women with family histories of breast and ovarian cancer and in Ashkenazi Jews (Jews of Eastern European descent). Women can now be tested for the BRCA genes. If the test is positive, preventive treatment can be taken, including increased monitoring of the breasts through mammograms and exams, preventive mastectomy and advance treatment with chemotherapy.
Hormone Receptors
Researchers have found that all breast cancers are made alike. Some tumors are affected by the amount of hormones in the body, specifically estrogen, and this difference can affect which treatments are best for patients. Estrogen-receptor (ER) positive tumors grow because they "feed" off high amounts of estrogen. ER-negative tumors aren't affected by estrogen levels. Some women with ER-positive tumors may not need chemotherapy.
Aromatase Inhibitors
The hormone therapy drug tamoxifen has been used to treat breast cancer for decades. In 2005, a newer class of hormone therapy drug--the aromatase inhibitors Arimidex, Aromasin and Femara--was found to be even more effective than tamoxifen in treating ER-positive tumors in post-menopausal women (women who have stopped menstruating).
Targeted Therapy
Herceptin is a drug that stops tumor growth by blocking proteins made by a certain gene called HER2. Women with breast cancer can be tested to see if the tumor is HER2-positive. If it is, that means that its growth is partially due to these extra proteins and that Herceptin can help shrink the tumor. As of now, Herceptin is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat women with metastatic (widespread) breast cancer. It's also approved as an adjuvant therapy for women with early-stage HER2-positive breast cancer (adjuvant therapy simply means that Herceptin is used after another treatment, like surgery). Tykerb is a similar drug that also blocks HER-2 proteins.
Other Research
Anti-angiogenesis drugs--drugs that kill off the extra blood vessels that feed tumors--are under investigation as a treatment for many types of cancer, including breast cancer. Bisphosphonates, a type of treatment often used to combat osteoporosis, is also used to treat women with advanced breast cancer that has spread to the bones. Researchers are testing bisphosponates to find out if they are also useful in preventing breast cancer from spreading to the bones.
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