Anti-nausea medicine linked to improved survival in breast cancer
Research findings
|Published
A new study shows that a commonly used anti-nausea medicine may be associated with improved prognosis for women with early-stage breast cancer. The effect was particularly evident among women with triple-negative breast cancer.
Data from more than 13,000 Norwegian women
Researchers analyzed data from 13,811 women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer between 2008 and 2020. All women had received chemotherapy and anti-nausea medication to prevent nausea and vomiting during treatment. Just over 7,000 of them had used the drug aprepitant.
Results show that women who received aprepitant during chemotherapy had an 11 percent lower risk of recurrence and a 17 percent lower risk of dying from breast cancer within the next ten years. This association was not found for other anti-nausea drugs.
The study is a collaboration between researchers at the Cancer Registry of Norway, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI), and Monash University. It has been published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
Strongest effect in triple-negative breast cancer
The effect was strongest among women with triple negative breast cancer, an aggressive form of the disease that is often difficult to treat. Here, aprepitant use was linked to a 34 percent lower risk of recurrence and a 39 percent lower risk of death.
– Because triple negative breast cancer has fewer targeted treatment options, repurposing established and safe drugs may be a promising strategy to improve treatment, says researcher and pharmacoepidemiologist at the Cancer Registry of Norway, (FHI), Edoardo Botteri.
First study to show this association
This is the first study to show a possible link between aprepitant and improved survival in breast cancer. The findings are based on observational data from the Cancer Registry of Norway, i.e. information about patients who have already received treatment in routine clinical practice.
Giske Ursin, Director of the Cancer Registry of Norway, (FHI), highlights that these are very exciting findings.
– The ability to analyze data from such a large patient group made it possible to identify the first signs of this association, says Ursin.
Botteri emphasizes that the results need to be confirmed through additional observational studies and clinical trials, both for breast cancer and other cancer types. Aprepitant is currently used not only by breast cancer patients, but also in connection with several other cancers.
– It will be very interesting to see whether similar effects can be found for other types of cancer as well, says Botteri.
Potential for broader use in the future
Today, aprepitant is only used for patients receiving chemotherapy with a high risk of nausea and vomiting. The researchers believe the results provide reason to consider whether the drug should be used more systematically in cancer treatment. However, the exact mechanisms behind the effect are still unknown. One possible explanation is that the anti-nausea drug may enhance the effect of chemotherapy.
– We need to better understand why this association occurs, and what it may mean for future use and dosing, says Botteri.