Anti-nausea drug may interfere with chemotherapy for breast cancer

An anti-nausea drug commonly given to breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy may actually interfere with the treatment.

In a laboratory experiment using breast cells, researchers from the University of Chicago found that the steroid dexamethasone, often taken by women just before doses of either paclitaxel or doxorubicin, reduced by more than 25% the drugs’ ability to kill malignant cells.

Dr. Suzanne Conzen, the study director and an assistant professor of medicine, said that her research team realized several years ago that some steroids could inhibit the death of certain cells. They then began to suspect that the anti-nausea drug might reduce the effectiveness of chemotherapy.

Although no one is telling women to stop taking dexamethasone, Conzen and her coauthors said their findings suggested it was time to study the interaction between the steroid and cancer drugs. The study appeared in the March 1 issue of the journal Cancer Research.

*

-- Jane E. Allen