Get $200 with your 1st order. Same day blood tests, next day results. Google reviews

Private MD News

Home | News | Breast

Breast cancer drug may disrupt cholesterol levels

Category: Breast

Women who take a common drug to prevent a recurrence of breast cancer may benefit from talking to their doctor about cholesterol testing, as a new study has found that the medication may significantly lower levels of beneficial HDL cholesterol.

The drug exemestane is commonly prescribed to treat breast cancer and prevent it from coming back. However, it is currently being tested as a possible preventative treatment for women who are at high risk of breast cancer.

Researchers from the Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center found that this may not be effective. Their study revealed that women who took the drug for 24 months experienced an average 9.9 mg/dl drop in HDL cholesterol.

Prior studies have shown that low levels of HDL increase the risk of heart attack and stroke, which would limit the benefit of taking exemestane as a preventative treatment.

"Lower HDL levels are associated with an increased risk of heart disease, so if a patient has a low HDL level, exemestane may not be the best choice as a breast cancer prevention agent," says the study's senior investigator, Jennifer Eng-Wong. 

Related Articles from Private MD:

News Categories:

Advanced Lipid Treatment I   Allergy Testing   Anemia and RBC disorders   Autoimmune Diseases   Bariatric Lab Testing   Blood and Blood Diseases   Breast   Cancer Detection and Tumor Markers   Celiac Disease Testing   Chlamydia   Coagulation and blood clotting disorders   Colon   DNA, Paternity and Genetic testing   Diabetes   Drug Screening   Environmental Toxin Testing   Female Specific Tests   Gastrointestinal Diseases   General Health   General Wellness   HIV   HIV monitoring/Treatment/Testing/Post Diagnos   Heart Health and Cholesterol   Herpes   Hormones and Metabolism   Infectious Diseases   Infertility Testing-Male   Infertitlity Hormone Testing   Kidney Diseases   Leukemia and WBC disorders   Liver   Liver Diseases   Lyme Disease   Male Specific Tests   Menopause/Peri-Menopausal Diagnosis   Musculoskeletal Diseases   Nicotine Screening   Organ Specific Testing   Ovarian   Prostate   Prostate   Sexually Transmitted Diseases   Thyroid Diseases   Transgender Hormone Testing-Male to Female   Transgender Hormone Testing-female to male   Vitamin D Deficiency-Diagnosis and Treatment   

Visit the Health News Archive: Click Here

Questions about online blood testing or how to order a lab test?

Speak with our Wellness Team: (877) 283-7882
Back to top