The use of generic medications used to strengthen bones are proving to reduce deaths caused by breast cancer.
Researchers recently released data from a study that followed 18.766 women that showed cheaper drugs better at preventing secondary tumors from growing in the bone, according to BBC News.
After a tumor is removed from the breast, there is a risk that tiny fragments might have already spread from the area. In the case of breast cancer, the bone is a favorite second home for the cancer where it can remain dormant for many years.
In osteoporosis, bisphosphonates are used to prevent bone loss. These same drugs are now believed to effectively starve any possible cancerous cells that have migrated to the bone which would therefore stop them from growing. These drugs are often taken by women when cancer has been found in their bones.
In order for more reliable information about the impact of these medications on an early intervention, the Early Breast Cancer Trialists’ Collaborative Group collected more data.
They were able to find that after 26 separate trials of women who took the drug for up to five years after cancer was removed from their breast, that there was a 28% decrease in cancers emerging in the bone. All the data was gathered from women who were post-menopausal.
In the same study, deaths were decreased by 18% within the 10 years from which they were originally diagnosed.
At the University of Sheffield where the data was analyzed, Professor Rob Coleman said, “The magnitude of the benefit on mortality was bigger than we had anticipated – a risk reduction of 18% is quite sizable.”
At this time however, the drug is not licensed for use for preventative measures, rather only for use when a cancer has been discovered in the bone. With the drug being out of patent, pharmaceutical companies are not eager to change the license due to little financial incentive.
Prof Coleman added, “The access issue is an important one. It would be a great shame if the systems we have to work with prove to be a block.
“Normally the problem is we can’t afford [a new drug] but this is peanuts, it’s that there isn’t a mechanism for this and there needs to be.”
The chief executive of Breast Cancer Now, Lady Morgan, also stated, “We believe that this is one of the most important steps forward in breast cancer treatment since the introduction of Herceptin over 10 years ago, but this time we’re talking about a few pence rather than thousands of pounds, and millions saved by the NHS.
“However, despite costing less than five pence a day per patient, this treatment runs the risk of ‘sitting on the shelf’, and not realizing its full benefit for the 34,000 [post-menopausal] women who could be eligible to take it each year.”
