Breast cancer associated with pregnancy is rare, but it does occur during
about one in 3,500 pregnancies. It is a difficult and challenging problem
for women and their physicians, who must weigh the potential benefits of
treatment against the risk of side effects that might harm the mother and
the unborn child.
But women with breast cancer who are pregnant can receive chemotherapy
during the middle and third trimesters of pregnancy and still have a good
chance of giving birth to healthy babies, according to a study published
in a recent issue of the journal Cancer (Vol. 86, No. 11). "In this
study, pregnant women in their second and third trimesters appear to have
undergone optimal chemotherapy with no complications in the majority of
cases," wrote the French research team led by Pierre-Ludovic Giacalone,
MD, of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Hospital Arnaud
de Villeneuve in Montpellier, France.
The researchers examined survey data provided by members of two professional
societies of French oncologists and obstetricians regarding their use of
chemotherapy in treating women with pregnancy-associated breast cancer.
The researchers included 20 women in the study. All had at least one cycle
of chemotherapy for breast cancer during pregnancy. Two women were treated
with chemotherapy during the first trimester of pregnancy. Both of them
experienced a miscarriage. Of the 18 women treated with chemotherapy after
the first trimester, 17 had live births. Among those, three infants had
complications directly related to chemotherapy, including one death.
"Breast cancer during pregnancy occurs more commonly in women who are
older during pregnancy, in their later 30s and early 40s, when the incidence
of breast cancer is also higher. The concern, as is the concern with treatment
of any cancer during pregnancy, is danger to the baby from the treatments,"
said Jeanne A. Petrek, MD, Director of the Surgical Program of the Evelyn
H. Lauder Breast Center at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.
Dr. Giacalone and colleagues said more research is needed to determine
the long-term effects of chemotherapy on babies whose mothers were treated
during pregnancy. They also said an interdisciplinary team of specialists,
including an obstetrician, oncologist, and neonatalogist should facilitate
treatment decisions.
"Almost everyone would agree that pregnant women [with cancer] should
be treated at a center where most the most experienced and interdisciplinary
efforts are obtained," Dr. Petrek said.
ACS News Center stories are provided as a source of cancer-related
news and are not intended to be used as
press releases.
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