Drugs May Cut Need for Preventive Cancer Surgery

Approximately one in 1,000 women is known to carry the BRCA1 mutation, which dramatically increases their risk of developing breast and ovarian cancers. At present, radical preventive surgery (double mastectomy and oophorectomy) is the only way in which women with the mutation can reduce their risk of developing these cancers. However, new research suggests that currently available drugs may help to reduce their risk by cutting estrogen levels. Dr Kienan Savage and Professor Paul Harkin of Queen’s University Belfast Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology (Northern Ireland, UK) discovered that the cells of women with the BRCA1 mutation cannot fight the very high levels of estrogen present in women’s breasts and ovaries, thus leaving the cells vulnerable to DNA damage and cancer. The authors describe their discovery as “very significant” as it is the first study to prove that estrogen is the driving force in cancer development in women with the BRCA1 mutation. Dr Savage, who led the study, said: “What also makes this exciting is that there are drugs already on the market which turn off estrogen production. In theory, we could use these drugs to chemically reduce estrogen production in women, which could negate the need for irreversible surgery.” The researchers are hoping to begin clinical trials within the next 12-months.