Abstract
Two hundred and twenty patients with progressive advanced breast cancer were given primary endocrine treatment (PET) according to menstrual status. Pre-menopausal patients received ovarian irradiation (O) and post-menopausal tamoxifen 10 mg bd (T). Patients were randomised to receive either no additional treatment or prednisolone 5 mg bd (P). Similar results were observed in each menstrual subgroup. In 194 evaluable patients, the response to PET + P was 49% and to PET alone 30% (P less than 0.01). P increased the median duration of response from 9 to 14 months (P less than 0.002) and the median time to disease progression from 5 to 9 months (P less than 0.001). Response to P after O or T alone occurred in only 2/62 (3%). Median survival in patients randomised to receive P at the outset of PET was prolonged by 4 months (P less than 0.05). The addition of P significantly improves the response to O or T in the treatment of advanced breast cancer.
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Rubens, R., Tinson, C., Coleman, R. et al. Prednisolone improves the response to primary endocrine treatment for advanced breast cancer. Br J Cancer 58, 626–630 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.1988.273
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/bjc.1988.273
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