Clinico-pharmacological aspects of different hormone treatments

During the last decade, several new drugs and classes of drugs have become available for breast cancer treatment. Thus, in addition to tamoxifen we ha ve got several new selective oestrogen receptor modulators (SERMs) with a p artially different pharmacological profile. The first generation aromatase inhibitor, aminoglutethimide, has been replaced by more potent and less tox ic inhibitors belonging to the triazole class (anastrozole and letrozole) a nd, more recently, the steroidal aromatase inactivator exemestane [1-3]. Th ese drugs have all revealed a better toxicity profile and, in general, an i mproved antitumour activity, compared with conventional therapy. Faslodex, the first representative of the so-called 'pure' oestrogen antagonists, has shown beneficial effects in patients resistant to tamoxifen [4]. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.