A drug to prevent, rather than treat, cancer is set to be listed on the PBS for the first time, following the positive recommendation of tamoxifen for breast cancer prevention.
Once listed, it is expected the drug will be available as a restricted benefit for women at moderately increased risk (1.5 to three times the population average) or high risk (greater than three times the population average) of the disease.
The recommendation was based on a meta-analysis of four head-to-head trials comparing tamoxifen to placebo, which showed that for 1000 women treated for 10 years, 14 breast cancers would be prevented.
According to Cancer Australia, risk should be determined on the basis of family history, and key factors associated with increased risk include multiple relatives affected by breast cancer, younger age at cancer diagnosis in relatives, having a relative with an identified mutation in a high-risk breast cancer gene and having relatives affected with bilateral breast cancer… Read More>>
Source: Medical Republic
