Mumbai: A new concern has come to light for those battling breast cancer. A drug commonly used in India to treat the condition has been found to decrease bone density in older women.
Considered a 'wonder drug' for breast cancer treatment, Exemestane, sold under the brand name, Aromasin, is commonly used in India. It is often prescribed for daily use to breast cancer patients for a period of five years. But now a study published in the medical journal 'The Lancet' has found that it decreases bone density.
The study surveyed 4500 women in their 60s for over two years. Scientists at the University Health Network in Toronto found that while the drug was highly effective in reducing breast cancer by two-thirds, after two years, what's called cortical bone thickness in women who took the drug declined by three times, compared to those who didn't take it.
That increases the risk of fractures. A serious concern is that four out of five fractures after the age of 60 years, which are either fatal or cause a life long disability, occur because of the loss of bone mineral density, according to the Arthritis Foundation of India. But doctors say that it's an understood risk....
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09:51 AM, Mar 01, 2012
