Femara prevents in breast cancer relapse

LONDON (Reuters) - New 4-year clinical trial results confirm the effectiveness of Novartis's drug Femara (letrozole) in cutting the risk of breast cancer returning, researchers said on Monday.

The latest 4-year figures from a study involving nearly 5,000 patients are consistent with a previous 2-year analysis, and doctors reported no increase in adverse events with long-term treatment.

Femara belongs to a relatively new class of drugs known as aromatase inhibitors, which are prescribed for postmenopausal women with hormone-sensitive tumours.

The drugs, which cut the risk of cancer recurrence by blocking the enzyme aromatase, are given following breast cancer surgery and are usually taken for 5 years.

Data presented at the European Society of Medical Oncology Congress in Istanbul showed that women on Femara had an 18-percent reduction in their overall risk of breast cancer recurrence after an average 51 months, compared with those taking the older hormonal therapy tamoxifen.

The use of Femara also resulted in greater disease-free survival in two groups of women particularly at risk of recurrence -- those whose cancer had already spread to the lymph nodes at the time of diagnosis and those who had received chemotherapy.

In these groups, the risk of recurrence was reduced in the study by 23 percent and 26 percent, respectively.