Novartis reports new Femara trial analysis

Novartis has announced the results of a new analysis showing that women who start treatment with Femara (letrozole) up to seven years after finishing treatment with tamoxifen will reduce the risk of their breast cancer returning.

This exploratory analysis of post-unblinding results from the key MA-17 trial has been published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology which was led by the National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group.

Women who started Femara after completing the recommended five year regimen of tamoxifen reduced the chance of a recurrence of breast cancer by 63 peer cent, while the risk of cancer spreading to other parts of the body was reduced by 61 per cent.

Paul Goss, of the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, said: “The important message for women is that it may never be too late for many breast cancer survivors to do more to protect themselves against the ongoing risk of disease recurrence.”

He added that the data in the analysis reinforces the need for women diagnosed with breast cancer to engage in a dialogue with their physicians to discuss methods for reducing the risk of a recurrence of their disease.

In July 2007, Novartis reported that its introduction of Femara and Zometa have offered patients “important and revolutionary” drugs to reduce the risk of developing breast cancer.