Are hormone replacement therapy and hormonal treatment the same? No. In fighting breast cancer, hormonal treatment is used to block the effect of estrogen or reduce estrogen levels. The idea is to keep estrogen from reaching cancer cells. Hormone replacement therapy (also called HRT), however, supplies estrogen to women to relieve the symptoms of menopause. Hormonal treatment for breast cancer and hormone replacement therapy for menopause are very different and have different goals. What are antiestrogens? Antiestrogens are drugs that interfere with breast cancer growth by attaching to estrogen receptors in breast cancer cells. This means estrogen itself cannot attach. So even though estrogen is present, its activity is blocked. Antiestrogens are considered hormonal treatment because they work by blocking the hormone estrogen. Do antiestrogens work for everybody? Antiestrogens are most likely to help if your tumor is hormone receptor positive. Your doctor can run a test to find out. What is an aromatase inhibitor? An aromatase inhibitor is a drug that blocks aromatase, an enzyme needed to make estrogen. What do hormones have to do with breast cancer? Hormones, such as estrogen, are naturally produced by organs or cells in your body, and they affect bodily processes. Some breast cancer tumors need certain natural hormones to grow. These tumors are said to have receptors for the hormones estrogen and/or progesterone. Lab tests of your cancer biopsy give your medical team this information. Breast cancer tumors that have these receptors are called estrogen and/or progesterone receptor positive. How is hormonal treatment used in breast cancer? Hormonal treatment is a way of fighting breast cancer. It can decrease the production of hormones or block your body's natural hormones from reaching cancer cells. Hormonal treatment works best when the tumor cells are estrogen and/or progesterone receptor positive. Two kinds of hormonal treatment used to treat breast cancer are called antiestrogens and aromatase inhibitors. If I'm postmenopausal, how could I still have estrogen in my body? Before menopause, your ovaries make most of your estrogen. But your body can make estrogen in another way. Your adrenal glands, which are above your kidneys, make hormones called androgens. An enzyme in your body called aromatase is found in your muscles, fat, liver, and also in breast tumors. Aromatase turns androgens into estrogen. That is why you can still have estrogen in your body even if you no longer have periods. What are some common treatments used for early breast cancer? Treatments are available for all women with breast cancer, whatever the stage. These days, however, most breast cancer is found at an early stage, and women can benefit from the most up-to-date, effective treatments. Treatments are constantly evolving, so it is important to talk to your doctor about your therapy. There are many options for you and your doctor to consider. Sometimes more than one treatment is needed. What is adjuvant therapy? Adjuvant means "in addition to." In breast cancer, this means that in addition to your primary, or initial, treatment, another therapy is being used. The reason for this is that after surgery, a small number of cancer cells may remain in your body. Not all patients have these cells, but if you do, they can continue to multiply. Adjuvant therapy is given to prevent or delay these cells from multiplying. The benefits of adjuvant therapy in breast cancer may include a decreased chance the disease will come back (recur). Cytotoxic chemotherapy, radiation, and hormonal treatment are three common forms of adjuvant treatment. Radiation therapy is often used after a lumpectomy and partial mastectomy to kill any cancer cells that may not have been removed during surgery. Chemotherapy Many women also have cytotoxic chemotherapy, which is treatment with drugs that attack and kill cancer cells and rapidly growing normal cells. Hormonal treatment For women whose tumors are hormone receptor positive, hormonal treatment is a common way to treat breast cancer by using drugs to block the effect of estrogen or to reduce estrogen levels. Surgery is an important part of treatment for many women with breast cancer. Many women can choose between lumpectomy and mastectomy. Lumpectomy is breast-conserving surgery in which just the tumor and some surrounding normal tissue are removed. Often, some lymph nodes under the arm are removed also. Mastectomy is the removal of part of the breast (called a partial mastectomy) or all of the breast, the lymph nodes under the arm, sometimes the lining over the chest muscles, and sometimes part of the chest wall muscles. Sallie Astor Burdine Foundation | 17050 Medical Center Drive | Baton Rouge, LA 70816 | 225.755.1174 P | 225.755.1189 F