Women Lack Info on Breast Cancer Therapy

In general, women are savvy about breast cancer, but most still lack knowledge regarding the newest treatments, says a new U.S. survey.

A mere 23 percent of women surveyed by GfK Roper Public Affairs were aware of treatments with drugs such as aromatase inhibitors that dramatically reduce risk of breast-cancer recurrence in post-menopausal women.

These survey results suggest that many women still lack essential disease treatment information, which reinforces the need for women to educate themselves to help get the best treatment, said Diane Blum, executive director of New York-based non-profit CancerCare, sponsor of the survey.

While great progress has been made in breast cancer awareness through public education and increased media coverage, women with breast cancer would benefit from more information about advances in treatments after surgery.

About 76 percent of women were aware of treatments such as chemotherapy, but their knowledge was limited about other new treatments such as monoclonal antibody-based drugs.

About 86 percent of women said they were not certain what questions they should ask their doctors about possible treatment.

Communication between the patients and their physicians is so important because it empowers them to take an active role in their treatment decisions, explained Gary Frenette, medical oncologist at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte. With essential information, patients can work with their physicians to achieve the best possible outcomes in the management of their diagnosis.

The survey was conducted between April 23 and May 9 via telephone among a national sample of 501 women between the ages of 50 and 65. Support for the survey was provided by Novartis Oncology.

For full survey results, visit www.cancercare.org.