on PinterestA progesterone-mimicking drug may help slow breast cancer tumor growth, according to research.
on PinterestA progesterone-mimicking drug may help slow breast cancer tumor growth, according to research. Image Credit: Fiordaliso/Getty Images
- A recent study found that a synthetic progesterone drug used to manage hot flashes in females with breast cancer may also help slow tumor growth.
- A low dose of megestrol acetate is already currently used to help individuals manage hot flashes associated with anti-estrogen treatment.
- The PIONEER trial has found that combining this synthetic progesterone drug with the conventional anti-estrogen treatment may also have a direct anticancer effect.
A drug that mimics the hormone progesterone may have anticancer activity when paired with conventional anti-estrogen treatments for females with breast cancer.
That’s according to a new trial led by the such as hot flashes.
However, the trial, dubbed PIONEER, found that the addition of megestrol to this treatment may also have a direct anticancer effect. The results were recently published in Nature Cancer.
“These findings could have significant clinical impact by improving treatment adherence while positively impacting tumor control. However, further studies will be required to substantiate these claims,” said Esha Sachdev, MD, a breast medical oncologist at the MemorialCare Todd Cancer Institute at Long Beach Medical Center in Long Beach, CA. Sachdev wasn’t involved in the study.
Debra Patt, MD, PhD, MBA, executive vice president of Public Policy and Strategy for Texas Oncology, who was not involved in the study, agreed.
“I think the study is exciting and should be expanded so we know how it might impact long-term outcomes in women with breast cancer,” Patt told Healthline.
Anticancer properties of progesterone-like drug
Around three-quarters of all breast cancers are ER-positive. This means that breast cancer has strong estrogen receptors, which are proteins located on or within cells that can bind to specific substances in the blood.
Breast cancer cells that are taken out during a biopsy or surgery are tested for estrogen and progesterone receptors. If the cells have either of these receptors, it means that when the hormone attaches to the receptor, it stimulates cancer growth.
Individuals with ER-positive breast cancer are often offered anti-estrogen medications to reduce the level of estrogen, depriving the cancer of estrogen and inhibiting its growth. However, reducing the estrogen levels can also lead to side effects that are similar to menopause symptoms, including:
- hot flashes
- potential bone loss
- joint and muscle pain
“One proposed mechanism as to why the megestrol reduces tumor growth is through improving adherence to adjuvant endocrine therapy by alleviating hot flashes, which is achieved with megestrol 40 milligrams,” Sachdev said.
“A second mechanism for the effectiveness of megestrol is the direct antiproliferative effect on tumor cells mediated by reduced ER genomic binding, subsequently antagonizing estrogen signaling. The lower dose may be sufficient to saturate receptors and therefore reduce ER chromatin binding,” she noted.
In the PIONEER trial, a total of 198 postmenopausal females with ER-positive breast cancer were recruited from 10 hospitals in the United Kingdom. The participants were randomized into three groups:
- only received letrozole, a medication that blocks estrogen and is used as a treatment
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