Hormone receptors and metastatic breast cancer
FASLODEX is indicated for the treatment of hormone receptor-positive metastatic breast cancer in postmenopausal women whose disease has returned or progressed following antiestrogen therapy.
The cells of metastatic breast cancer may have receptors for estrogen and progesterone. When they do, the metastatic breast cancer is said to be hormone receptor positive. When breast cancers are estrogen receptor positive, estrogen may contribute to the growth and spread of the cancer.
Hormonal treatments are often used to treat hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. They work by blocking the effects of estrogen on breast cancer cells or by reducing the amount of estrogen produced by the body.
A closer look at how estrogen affects breast cancer
Estrogen does not cause breast cancer, though it may promote the growth of tumors. Here's how certain breast cancer cells live and grow with the help of estrogen:
Estrogen finds a specialized receiver in a cell, called a receptor.
Estrogen attaches itself to estrogen receptors. These receptors take the estrogen and bring it into the center of the cancer cell (nucleus) so that estrogen can give the signal for the tumor to grow.
Result: cancer cells grow and divide to form more cells.
FASLODEX works by interacting with hormone receptors. Learn more about FASLODEX and watch the video to see how it works.