IS THERE AN ASSOCIATION BETWEEN LONG-TERM TAMOXIFEN TREATMENT AND THEDEVELOPMENT OF CARCINOSARCOMA (MALIGNANT MIXED MULLERIAN TUMOR) OF THE UTERUS

A cluster of five patients with endometrial carcinosarcoma (malignant mixed Mullerian tumor) occurred at our center during 1993; four of the se had been prescribed long-term tamoxifen for breast carcinoma. Searc hing the archives for the 9-year period 1983-1992 revealed two further cases of uterine carcinosarcoma occurring in patients prescribed tamo xifen, from a total of 16 cases of this tumor. Five of the six patient s diagnosed with carcinosarcoma who had been taking tamoxifen had been maintained on the drug for at least 6 years, while the other had a 3- year history of tamoxifen therapy. From these data we raise the questi on of an association between long-term tamoxifen treatment and develop ment of endometrial carcinosarcoma, following the dramatic increase in the prescribing of this drug after 1984.