CHD occurs when blood flow through the arteries of the heart becomes progressively reduced as a result of atherosclerosis. If the blockage stops blood flow to an area of heart muscle, a heart attack may result. Over 40 percent of the people who experience a coronary attack in a given year will die of it. From 1988 to 1998, the death rate from CHD declined 26.3 percent, but the actual number of deaths declined only 9.8 percent. Tamoxifen has mixed effects depending on the organ it's acting on.
Heart disease is the number one killer of American women.
Previous breast cancer trials have reported 15 percent to 60 percent reductions in cardiac death in women treated with tamoxifen, and researchers linked this effect to the drug's lipid-lowering properties. Indeed, women on tamoxifen had a 9 percent reduction in total cholesterol levels in this study. However, Dr. Cushman reports that the effects on inflammatory markers were larger than on cholesterol. A pain in the neck hubby may mean more than the usual aggravation. Think heart trouble.