Breast Cancer & Osteoporosis Treatments

CREATED Jul. 1, 2011

Bisphosphonate drugs such as Fosamax, Boniva, and Zometa, are one of the most popular drugs for women, with around 30 million prescriptions written annually in the U.S. The medications prevent bone loss and are used to treat osteoporosis, but emerging research finds they may also fight breast cancer. Doctors first suspected that bisphosphonates might have additional benefits when they noticed breast cancer patients taking the drugs for their bones had fewer incidents of cancer in their second breast. This led them to wonder: could these medications actually reduce the odds of developing breast cancer in the first place? The answer may be yes. Researchers examining records on more than 150,000 women in a U.S. government health study found those taking the drugs for osteoporosis were 32 percent less likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer. Similar results were seen in Israeli women taking bisphosphonates for at least five years. Researchers say the drugs may stimulate immune cells to fight cancers and change blood vessel supply so that tumors cannot grow as easily.