CHICAGO – Extending adjuvant aromatase inhibitor treatment out to a decade reduced the risk of recurrence and the risk of a new breast cancer in postmenopausal women treated for early-stage breast cancer, Dr. Paul Goss reported at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.
Women taking letrozole for five additional years had a 34% lower risk of disease-free survival events than those who received placebo, data from MA.17R showed. The annual incidence of contralateral breast cancer was .21% with extended letrozole vs. .49% with placebo. There was no difference in overall survival.
In an interview at the meeting, Dr. Goss discusses the “profoundly important result” and says doctors should be challenged if choosing not to extend treatment for their patients.