Department of Oncology, Oncology Unit, Azienda Ospedaliera ASMN, Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico, viale Risorgimento 80, 42123 Reggio Emilia, Italy.
Anticancer Res. 2014 Mar;34(3):1287-90.
Hormone therapy plays an important role in the management of breast cancer. In the past, testosterone was the most common line of hormonal therapy for this disease, but its use has been almost completely abandoned in the past 40 years. However, because of earlier reports on favorable therapeutic results, we re-evaluated its use for treatment of hormone-responsive patients who have become refractory to other lines of hormonal therapy.
Fifty-three consecutive patients with positive metastatic breast cancer who had become refractory to treatment with other hormones and whose disease was progressing, were treated with testosterone propionate, 250 mg once every two weeks, twice, and then once every four weeks until disease progression, drug toxicity, or death.
Regression of disease was seen in 9 patients (17%; 2% complete and 15% partial). Stabilization of disease was seen in 22 patients (41.5%). In the remaining 22 patients (41,5%), the disease progressed. Median overall survival was 12 months from beginning of testosterone treatment. Hirsutism and dysphonia were noted occasionally, but were not distressing enough to mandate cessation of treatment. There was no major toxicity except for two non-fatal pulmonary emboli.
Testosterone showed a significant therapeutic activity in previously hormone-treated patients with metastatic breast cancer who were no longer responding to such treatment and whose disease was progressing. These results warrant consideration of testosterone use as treatment for patients with hormone-sensitive metastatic breast cancer.
激素治疗在乳腺癌的治疗中起着重要作用。过去，睾丸素是治疗这种疾病最常用的激素治疗方法，但在过去 40 年中，其应用已几乎完全被摒弃。然而，由于早期有关于治疗效果良好的报告，我们重新评估了其在治疗对其他激素治疗线产生耐药的激素反应性患者中的应用。
53 例连续的转移性乳腺癌患者，在对其他激素治疗产生耐药且疾病进展后，接受丙酸睾丸酮治疗，每两周 250mg，2 次，然后每四周 1 次，直到疾病进展、药物毒性或死亡。
9 例（17%；2%完全缓解，15%部分缓解）疾病出现缓解。22 例（41.5%）疾病稳定。在其余 22 例（41.5%）患者中，疾病进展。从开始睾丸酮治疗到总生存的中位数为 12 个月。偶尔会出现多毛症和声音改变，但并不足以令人痛苦而需要停止治疗。除了 2 例非致命性肺栓塞外，没有其他主要毒性。
睾丸素对先前接受激素治疗的转移性乳腺癌患者显示出显著的治疗活性，这些患者对这种治疗不再有反应，且疾病在进展。这些结果证明睾丸素可用于治疗激素敏感的转移性乳腺癌患者。
