title: The effect of tamoxifen treatment on serum cholesterol fractions in breast cancer women.
abstract: Serum levels of total, free, HDL- and LDL-cholesterol were determined in 45 postmenopausal breast cancer women treated with tamoxifen (TAM) from 6 to 73 months (mean duration of TAM treatment was 21.3 months) as an adjuvant therapy after mastectomy, and in the control group of 33 breast cancer women at the time of diagnosis before any treatment. The mean age of patients was 63 years in the TAM treated group and 70 years in the untreated breast cancer patients. TAM treated patients were found to have significantly lower concentration of serum total cholesterol (5.43 mmol/l vs. 6.44 mmol/l; p < 0.02) and LDL-cholesterol (3.54 mmol/l vs. 4.32 mmol/l; p < 0.01). There were 8 (18%) hypercholesterolemic patients in the TAM treated group vs. 13 (39%) in the untreated breast cancer patients (p < 0.05). No statistically significant differences were observed in serum concentrations of free and HDL-cholesterol in the two evaluated groups. We conclude that the TAM-induced changes in serum lipid concentrations are due to an estrogen-like activity of the agent and the reduction of total and LDL-cholesterol level seems to be an additional advantage of TAM treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiotherapy, Medical School of Gdańsk, Poland.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dziewulska-Bokiniec
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wojtacki
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Skokowski
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kortas
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000097:blood* / Q000628:therapy; D017024:Chemotherapy, Adjuvant; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood*; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006937:Hypercholesterolemia / Q000150:complications; D008875:Middle Aged; D013629:Tamoxifen / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL; D013629:Tamoxifen; D002784:Cholesterol