Interesting anti-inflammatory meds & high BC risk

Lea7777

News Release 13-Dec-2019

Mayo Clinic researchers present findings at the 2019 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium

SAN ANTONIO -- Mayo Clinic researchers will present findings at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium Dec. 10-14 in San Antonio.

New Mayo Clinic studies to be presented include:

• "Women at Elevated Risk of Developing Breast Cancer May Benefit From Taking Anti-inflammatory Drugs"
• Research from Mayo Clinic investigators suggest that some women with an elevated risk of developing breast cancer may benefit from taking anti-inflammatory medications.

"Several studies have evaluated whether the use of anti-inflammatory medications such as aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen affect a woman's risk of developing breast cancer," says Amy Degnim, M.D., a breast surgical oncologist at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, "but little is known about how use of these drugs might affect their risk after a benign breast biopsy." Dr. Degnim says about one million women receive a diagnosis of benign breast disease annually in the U.S. and having this history increases their risk of developing breast cancer.

Researchers surveyed women who had undergone a benign breast biopsy at Mayo Clinic between 1992 and 2001, and asked them to report which types of these medications they had used and for how long. Researchers also obtained information on which women had developed breast cancer at any point in the years after their initial benign biopsy.

"We found that women who reported using ibuprofen or naproxen had an approximately 40% reduction in breast cancer risk, while women who reported using aspirin had no reduction in breast cancer risk," says Dr. Degnim. "Women who used the drugs more frequently on a regular basis also had greater protection from breast cancer."

Dr. Degnim says the findings suggest that women who have had a benign breast biopsy may benefit from medications that reduce inflammation, except for aspirin, in terms of reducing later breast cancer risk. She cautions that this study was not a clinical trial and she does not recommend that all women should take these medications to reduce their breast cancer risk. "Our results support the need for a clinical trial to further investigate the risks and benefits of taking these medications to lower breast cancer risk."

AliceBastable

Huh. I took naproxen for years, then switched to ibuprofen for years, for arthritis. Not only did I get breast cancer, but both of those were highly contributing factors in my kidney cancer.

Anonymous

Alice,

"I took naproxen for years, then switched to ibuprofen for years, for arthritis. Not only did I get breast cancer, but both of those were highly contributing factors in my kidney cancer."

Sorry to hear that. May I ask what dosages your doctor recommended. I started taking napoxen last year for very bad pain in my leg and back. I only take a pill once or twice a week if and when the pain gets very bad.

AliceBastable

My urologist said no more than one a day. I only take one if the arthritis is driving me nuts or if I'm going to be more active than usual. I have an appointment with a nephrologist next month because my bloodwork puts me at Stage 3 kidney disease in my remaining kidney. Maybe I'll get a more definitive answer on pain control from her.

WC3

Well that's another thing on my list of "Anti-cancer things that didn't help me".

Anonymous

Hmm is there a 'Sure, Jan' gif option?

I don't take naproxen because it makes me nauseous, but I do take Ibuprofen and yeah, that was awesome protection. I take it now for the bone and muscle pains because nothing else works. I may have taken quite a bit of Ibuprofen in 2016 when I herniated a disk and that was pre-cancer so... I dunno Mayo.

This seems like an odd study potentially correlating two things that may not be related and relying on memories going back quite some time...

wallycat

Make sure to monitor your blood pressure; Ibuprofen (not sure about the others) also increase blood pressure.

Mominator

If you are interested in the above topic, you may also be interested in this thread

TORADOL (ketorolac) linked to Recurrence Prevention

https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/73/topics...

The theory is that anti-inflammatory medications used before surgery may reduce inflammation, and thus reduce recurrence. Recurrence is linked to the body's response to inflammation.

Best wishes,

Mominator