Study Confirms Tamoxifen Raises Endometrial Cancer Risk

Doctors often prescribe the drug tamoxifen to breast cancer patients over the long term, to help reduce the chances of cancer recurrence. But a new study confirms tamoxifen can also boost the risk of endometrial cancer in both pre-menopausal and postmenopausal women, with that risk increasing the longer a woman takes the drug. However, Debbie Saslow, director for breast and gynecologic cancer control for the American Cancer Society, stressed that doctors have long understood that tamoxifen carries this caveat. The new study isn't going to change how doctors do things, she predicted, but "it helps people make more informed choices." The findings appear in the March 2 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.