Unbiased Treatment Options Required For Breast Cancer Patients

Study conducted by Professor Silliman and her colleagues in women with breast cancer has found that elderly women with breast cancer are increasingly asked to undergo Tamoxifen therapy compared to younger breast cancer patients who are given different treatment options by the medical oncologist.

The study published in the Journal Cancer reports that tamoxifen is recommended to older women with estrogen positive breast cancers, whereas younger patients receive definitive care. The study was done in 559 patients with 65 years or older who were treated by 191 surgeons. Silliman's team conducted the current study to see if older women who met with a medical oncologist were more likely to be prescribed tamoxifen therapy when appropriate. Dr. Silliman reports that Seventy-nine percent of the participants had been referred to medical oncologists, which is lower than the 88 percent seen among younger.