Breast cancer drug Herceptin linked to heart risks

Trading breast cancer for heart failure

I have to be honest with you. Writing about pharmaceutical drug risks always makes me a little sad. After all, so much hope is placed on these drugs. People rely on them for healing?often for saving lives. And then the truth hits. And it hits hard.

In any decision, potential rewards must be weighed against risks. But to do that, you have to know about them in the first place. And in the case of a popular breast cancer drug, people haven?t known about the full extent of the risks since 1998 when the drug was approved by the FDA.

For those 14 years Herceptin has been used to treat breast cancer despite a known risk of heart failure. According to Herceptin?s own prescribing information it can put you at risk for a condition called cardiomyopathy, which causes your heart muscle to become thick or enlarged. This can lead to CHF, a condition in which you gradually lose heart muscle causing your heart to become less effective at pumping blood.

Now a new study, showing that the risk may be higher than anyone ever thought, is highlighting yet again why ?one size fits all? medicine is always a bad idea.

Researchers, writing for the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, are warning that if you?re a woman over the age of 67 ?your risk of developing heart failure or cardiomyopathy may be higher than what is quoted to you? by your doctor. You see, the problem is that the original estimated risks were based on studies that were done on younger, and likelier healthier, women.

In the earlier studies, the risk of heart failure was about 1.6 percent higher for women taking Herceptin. So, it was considered low. In the new study, though, the story is different.

For every 100 patients, 32 who took Herceptin and 42 who took Herceptin in combination with anthracyclines developed heart problems within 3 years. Compare that to the significantly lower 19 out of 100 among women who didn?t receive chemotherapy.

The researchers suggest that women on Herceptin need more ?monitoring.? They also want women to discuss the risks and benefits of the drug with their doctors. But the truth is Herceptin may only increase survival rates by 5 months on average according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine of Stage IV patients with HER-2 positive cancer.

Some women may look at all of the information about Herceptin and decide it?s still right for them. Others may not feel the rewards are worth the risk. But we all need to know the complete truth so we?re not making those decisions blindly.

That?s why the e-Tips are so important. Not only do you get the complete story, but you also learn about natural alternatives like bitter melon, iodine, and vitamin D for fighting breast cancer. The inside scoop on these solutions?along with many others?are waiting for you in the archive at www.wrightnewsletter.com.

P.S. Perhaps one day the mainstream will stop throwing dangerous drugs and harmful radiation at cancer long enough to discover that the safe and natural solution to wiping out cancer was right under their noses the whole time. But why wait for the them to catch on when our friends and affiliates at HSI can bring you tomorrow?s cancer cures TODAY? Click here to learn more.

Sources:
?Herceptin May Carry Higher Heart Risks for Women Than Thought,? Medline Plus (www.nlm.nih.gov)

?Hope on the Horizon for Advanced Breast Cancer,? WebMD (www.webmd.com)

Source: http://wrightnewsletter.com/2012/11/28/breast-cancer-drug-herceptin-linked-to-heart-risks/

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