Tamoxifen, commercially known as Nolvadex, is usually prescribed by breast cancer specialists and is considered a pill. The patient will stay on medication for about five years.
Usually a woman's cancer will be tested to see if she is sensitive to estrogen levels in the system. If the cancer is sensitive to estrogen, it will be given tamoxifen.
Because tamoxifen is such a weakened estrogen, its estrogen signals do not significantly promote cell growth. And because of its proximity to estrogen, it inhibits the growth of estrogen-induced cancer cells. In this way, tamoxifen acts as an "anti-estrogen."
Tamoxifen may also aid in making healthy breast cells. Thus it inhibits growth, and possibly stops abnormal growth and development of completely new breast cancer. By preventing natural estrogen from reaching the receptors, tamoxifen helps reduce the risk of breast cancer in high-risk women who have never had breast cancer. It can also help women who already have breast cancer in the breast by reducing the risk of developing breast cancer in another breast.
One study found that radiation and tamoxifen were significantly better than tamoxifen alone in reducing the risk of recurrent breast cancer after lumpectomy in women with hormone-receptor-positive breast cancer. This was true even of women with very little cancer.
For premenstrual women, tamoxifen is the best hormone replacement therapy. But tamoxifen is no longer the first option for post-menopausal women. If you have been taking tamoxifen for two to three years and are now discontinued, your doctor may recommend that you switch to an aromatase inhibitor to complete your five years of hormone therapy. However, you can still get great benefits if you take tamoxifen for up to five years and switch to an aromatase inhibitor.
Tamoxifen was first used to fight breast cancer at Christie Hospital in Manchester, England, in 1969. It has since proven its importance as a means of preventing the spread or re-emergence of the disease in women who are already being treated for it.
However, it was noted back in the early 1980s that some women who received cancer treatment in one breast did not develop tumor growth in another. This has led to the suggestion that Tamoxifen may play another role in preventing those women who are at risk of developing breast cancer but who do not yet have symptoms of the disease.
For premenstrual women, tamoxifen is the best hormone replacement therapy. But tamoxifen is no longer the first option for post-menopausal women. If you have been taking tamoxifen for two to three years and are now discontinued, your doctor may recommend that you switch to an aromatase inhibitor to complete your five years of hormone therapy. However, you can still get great benefits if you take tamoxifen for up to five years and switch to an aromatase inhibitor.However, it was noted back in the early 1980s that some women who received cancer treatment in one breast did not develop tumor growth in another. This has led to the suggestion that Tamoxifen may play another role in preventing those women who are at risk of developing breast cancer but who do not yet have symptoms of the disease.
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