title: Appraising current therapy for breast cancer. 3. Hormonal manipulation and chemotherapy.
abstract: Hormonal manipulation and chemotherapy used as adjuvants to surgery are aimed at controlling systemic micro-metastases from breast cancer. Primary hormonal manipulation consists of oophorectomy (for premenopausal women) or hormone administration. Hormone receptors, which are sometimes present in tumors, are now being measured and tested for their predictive value as to which tumors will respond to manipulation. Systemic chemotherapy has been used for years, but no drug that is specific against mammary tumors has yet been discovered. New drugs or combinations of older drugs are constantly being tested. To acquire a good data base for future decisions, systemic chemotherapy should be administered and patients followed up according to carefully constructed protocols.
mesh_terms: D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy*; D002369:Castration; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D005260:Female; D006728:Hormones / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D008558:Melphalan; D013852:Thiotepa / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D006728:Hormones; D004317:Doxorubicin; D013852:Thiotepa; D008558:Melphalan