Study: Cancer Drug Has Heart Benefits

A Boston University study suggests women who received tamoxifen for breast cancer treatment have a significantly reduced risk of heart disease.

The study, published in the March 15 issue of CANCER, said the benefit becomes pronounced within two years of therapy and is maintained throughout its use.

Brian Bradbury and his Boston University Schools of Medicine and Public Health team reviewed the records of 3,030 breast cancer patients treated with tamoxifen and 4,233 patients with other cancers not treated with tamoxifen.

The team found women who received the drug were less likely to develop symptomatic heart disease than those who did not receive tamoxifen. They also found the benefits of the drug continued throughout the entire recommended five years of treatment.

Tamoxifen has been found to reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence by as much as 50 percent.