Ewha Med J.  2014 Sep;37(2):83-91. 10.12771/emj.2014.37.2.83.

Endocrine Therapy for Breast Cancer

• Woo J
• Lim W

• KMID: 2171288
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.12771/emj.2014.37.2.83

Abstract

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer in Korean women and its mortality rate has increased steadily. Although breast cancer is heterogeneous tumor, hormone receptor-positive tumors comprise about 75 percent of all breast cancers. Therefore endocrine therapy that works by targeting estrogen receptor is a pivotal treatment for breast cancers. There are selective estrogen receptor modulators, such as tamoxifen and raloxifene, aromatase inhibitors, such as anastrozole, letrozole and exemestane, fulvestrant and luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone agonists used in endocrine therapy. Endocrine therapy is effective in treating early breast cancer as an adjuvant therapy and metastatic breast cancer as a palliative therapy. Also in women who are at high risk for breast cancer, tamoxifen or raloxifene can prevent breast cancer. Studies for neoadjuvant endocrine therapy are emerging. Considering side effects of each drug and overcoming drug resistance are needed to maximize effectiveness of treatment and advance endocrine therapy.

Keyword

Breast neoplasms; Drug therapy; Antineoplastic agents, hormonal

MeSH Terms

Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal
Aromatase Inhibitors
Breast
Breast Neoplasms*
Drug Resistance
Drug Therapy
Estrogens
Female
Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone
Humans
Mortality
Palliative Care
Raloxifene Hydrochloride
Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators
Tamoxifen
Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal
Aromatase Inhibitors
Estrogens
Gonadotropin-Releasing Hormone
Raloxifene
Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulators
Tamoxifen

Figure

• 

  Fig. 1 (A) Pre- and (B) posttreatment breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in a patient who received neoadjuvant endocrine therapy. A 72-year-old woman was diagnosed with breast cancer on April, 2013. A left subareolar mass was confirmed as invasive ductal carcinoma by core needle biopsy and immunohistochemistry revealed that the tumor was estrogen receptor- and progesterone receptor-positive, and C-erbB2-negative breast cancer. She was treated with letrozole for 6 months. MRI shows the clinical response of neoadjuvant endocrine therapy. The size of primary tumor partially decreased from 4.2 cm to 3.0 cm on MRI after neoadjuvant endocrine therapy for 6 months (arrows). Also metastatic lymph node in left axilla disappeared (not shown).

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