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Posted on Dec 27, 2003, 10 a.m.
By Bill Freeman
Results of a recent study on mice suggest that gefitinib, a new drug used to treat certain lung cancers, may help to prevent breast cancer. Dr Powel H Brown of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and colleagues treated mice genetically engineered to develop "estrogen receptor-negative" breast cancer with gefitinib, which is marketed by AstraZeneca under the name Iressa.
Results of a recent study on mice suggest that gefitinib, a new drug used to treat certain lung cancers, may help to prevent breast cancer. Dr Powel H Brown of Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, and colleagues treated mice genetically engineered to develop "estrogen receptor-negative" breast cancer with gefitinib, which is marketed by AstraZeneca under the name Iressa. Results of the study revealed that it took 230 days for breast cancer to occur in mice treated with a placebo, while in those given the drug it took at least 310 days. Furthermore, at the end of the study when all the placebo group mice had developed breast cancer, just 25% of the mice treated with gefitinib had developed the disease. At present, there are no drugs available to prevent estrogen receptor-negative breast cancers, however the results of this study suggest that gefitinib could soon change this.
SOURCE/REFERENCE: J Natl Cancer Inst 2003;95:1825-1833.
