It makes the decision around tamoxifen all the more difficult. The disclosure that these women were at very high risk was lost in the shuffle. Sue says that she apologized and they ended up having a very useful conversation about the issue. These women are scared. One of our members had another criticism of tamoxifen.
Tamoxifen is one of the cheaper, first-line treatments.
The incidence of cancer then either increases or stays the same. The highest incidence of recurrence is at 2.5 - 3 years. It becomes a level playing field again after 5 years. So what happens, Sue asked, if a well woman takes it for five years, say from 36 - 41, as prevention. Then she gets breast cancer at age 45.