Bone fracture risk may be higher in postmenopausal breast ca survivors: analysis of WHI participants.(Gynecology)

MINNEAPOLIS -- Menopausal breast cancer survivors may have a 29%-32% higher risk of sustaining fractures at specific sites than do other menopausal women, according to data from the Women's Health Initiative.

That finding suggests that doctors should consider fracture prevention measures for patients with a history of breast cancer, Zhao Chen, Ph.D., said at the annual meeting of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.

Breast cancer survivors showed an increased fracture risk at most of the sites studied, but their hip fracture risk was similar to that of controls, said Dr. Chen of the University of Arizona, Tucson.

"These findings suggest that a history of breast cancer may be a marker for a greater risk of fracture, but I wouldn't call it an independent risk factor because [the risk] may be related to other things, such as their use of hormones or chemotherapy," Dr. Chen said in an interview.

Bone mineral density may be affected by the abrupt termination of postmenopausal hormone therapy (HT) when the disease is diagnosed, or by the toxicity or early menopause induced by chemotherapy, she explained.

The study, a prospective cohort analysis, included 86,146 postmenopausal women ranging in age from 50 to 79 years, with an average age of 64 years. Of those women, 5,298 reported a history of breast cancer. The other 80,848 had no history of any type of cancer and served as a reference group. The women were followed for an average of 5.1 years.

On average, breast cancer survivors were older than the reference group at baseline (65 years vs. 63 years) and had been postmenopausal for a longer time (18 years vs. 16 years).