Osteoporosis Drug May Fight Several Diseases
Osteoporosis Drug May Fight Several Diseases
Feb. 24, 2010 -- A new entry in a popular class of osteoporosis drugs may help postmenopausal women reduce their risk of broken bones as well as fight breast cancer, heart disease, and stroke.
Lasofoxifene is a part of a class of drugs known as nonsteroidal selective estrogen-receptor modulators (SERMs). It has already been shown to decrease the bone loss and weakening associated with osteoporosis, like other SERMs, including tamoxifen and raloxifene. But until now its effect on other health conditions commonly experienced by postmenopausal women was unknown.
A new study shows that postmenopausal women with osteoporosis who took a 0.5-milligram daily dose of lasofoxifene had a 42% lower risk of vertebral (spinal) fractures and a 24% lower risk of non-vertebral fractures than those who took a placebo treatment.
The women who took lasofoxifene also had an 81% lower risk of estrogen-receptor (ER) positive breast cancer, a 32% lower risk of heart-related events like heart attack, and a 36% lower risk of stroke.
"This is the first SERM that reduces the risk of all of these conditions at once," researcher Steven Cummings, MD, of the San Francisco Coordinating Center at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, says in a news release. "Not only did it reduce vertebral fractures, which was not unexpected, it also reduced the risk of non-vertebral fractures -- injuries to the arms, legs, ribs, hips -- that are the most common injuries to people with osteoporosis and the main causes of disability."
Although lasofoxifene is available in Europe, the FDA recently rejected a request for approval in the U.S., and some experts question whether its benefits surpass those of other SERMs already on the market.
The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, followed 8,556 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis who were randomly assigned to receive either a 0.25-milligram or 0.5-milligram dose of lasofoxifene or a placebo over five years.
The results showed the 0.5-milligram dose was much more effective at lowering the risk of fractures and boosting bone density compared to the placebo.
Lasofoxifene is a part of a class of drugs known as nonsteroidal selective estrogen-receptor modulators (SERMs). It has already been shown to decrease the bone loss and weakening associated with osteoporosis, like other SERMs, including tamoxifen and raloxifene. But until now its effect on other health conditions commonly experienced by postmenopausal women was unknown.
A new study shows that postmenopausal women with osteoporosis who took a 0.5-milligram daily dose of lasofoxifene had a 42% lower risk of vertebral (spinal) fractures and a 24% lower risk of non-vertebral fractures than those who took a placebo treatment.
The women who took lasofoxifene also had an 81% lower risk of estrogen-receptor (ER) positive breast cancer, a 32% lower risk of heart-related events like heart attack, and a 36% lower risk of stroke.
"This is the first SERM that reduces the risk of all of these conditions at once," researcher Steven Cummings, MD, of the San Francisco Coordinating Center at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, says in a news release. "Not only did it reduce vertebral fractures, which was not unexpected, it also reduced the risk of non-vertebral fractures -- injuries to the arms, legs, ribs, hips -- that are the most common injuries to people with osteoporosis and the main causes of disability."
Although lasofoxifene is available in Europe, the FDA recently rejected a request for approval in the U.S., and some experts question whether its benefits surpass those of other SERMs already on the market.
Drug Fights Fractures and More
The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, followed 8,556 postmenopausal women with osteoporosis who were randomly assigned to receive either a 0.25-milligram or 0.5-milligram dose of lasofoxifene or a placebo over five years.
The results showed the 0.5-milligram dose was much more effective at lowering the risk of fractures and boosting bone density compared to the placebo.
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