Estradiol in Breast Cancer Treatment
Reviving the Past
- Pamela N. Munster, MD;
- John T. Carpenter, MD
- Author Affiliations: Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology Oncology, University of California, San Francisco (Dr Munster); and Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology/Oncology, Department of Pathology, Department of Surgery, University of Alabama at Birmingham (Dr Carpenter).
Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text.
Despite a declining incidence, breast cancer remains the most common cancer among women in the United States.1 More than two-thirds of all patients with breast cancer present with tumors that express estrogen receptors, progesterone receptors, or both, and the modulation of estrogen receptor signaling has been one of the most successful strategies for these patients. In recent years, the most commonly used forms of endocrine therapy have included the competitive inhibition of the estrogen receptors with an antiestrogen (selective estrogen receptor modulators [SERMs], eg, tamoxifen, or selective estrogen–receptor down-regulators, [SERDs], eg, fulvestrant) and the decrease in estrogen production from precursor steroid hormones using an aromatase inhibitor.
In this issue of JAMA, Ellis and colleagues2 describe the findings of a preliminary phase 2 randomized study, evaluating the efficacy of 2 daily doses of oral estradiol (30 mg vs 6 mg). The study included 66 postmenopausal women with hormone …
