This reference evaluates and describes the latest strategies for hormone suppression and blockade in the management of early and advanced stage breast cancer and explores the effects of tamoxifen, selective estrogen receptor modulators (SERMs), aromatase inhibitors, and their combination on both breast cancers and normal tissues. Endocrine T

Progress in basic research has made it necessary to redetermine the possibility of classic endocrine therapy for the treatment of patients with breast cancer. Exemplary, close cooperation between biochemis try and animal and clinical research led to a truly interdisciplinary and international exchange of ideas and experience at a symposium held in autumn 1978 in Heidelberg. We owe our thanks to ICI-Pharma for the kind support of this sym posIUm. The participation of Charles Huggins in the meeting as honorary chairman signified to all participants the meaning of this joint endeavour. It was the same Charles Huggins who through experimental work laid the foundation stone for endocrine ther apy of prostate and breast cancer, and who applied his findings clinically. Thousands of patients owe to him relief from their suffering. He contributed greatly to the attempt to find and stabilize the endocrine therapy for breast cancer, for which we thank him sincerely. We hope that the following contributions will similarly serve the well-being of our patients.

Adjuvant treatment is administered prior to or as follow up to surgical procedures for breast cancer. Proven success in using medical therapies allowing for breast conserving procedures or reducing risk of occurrence. Although there has been much progress towards a cure, including the introduction of new targeted therapies, metastasizing cancer remains highly incurable.

Offering the most comprehensive, up-to-date information on the diagnosis and management of, and rehabilitation following, surgery for benign and malignant diseases of the breast, this surgical reference is now in a new edition available in both print and online for easy, convenient access to the absolute latest advances.

This book is a practical guide to the management of patients with breast malignancies. It serves as a quick reference book that gives the most up-to-date routine practical management strategies of breast cancer. Written and edited by leading experts, this handbook focuses on the application of conventional and novel treatment strategies to the care of patients with malignant breast disease and all stages of breast cancer. The chapters provide evidence-based treatment strategies for all patient subsets. Surgical, radiation, and medical treatment options are all discussed for each stage of breast cancer. It also includes the definitions of statistical terminologies and their usage in clinical practice and research. This is a comprehensive yet concise resource for residents, fellows, and early-career practitioners.

Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer mortality in women worldwide, and the risk of disease recurrence continues despite improvements in screening and treatment. For patients with hormone receptor-positive breast cancer, some form of endocrine therapy is central to the management of their disease. Tamoxifen has long been the mainstay of endocrine therapy in this group of patients. However, there is mounting evidence showing that the aromatase inhibitors are able to reduce overall oestrogen levels and appear to be better tolerated over a long term than tamoxifen. New and emerging indications for the aromatase inhibitors are providing clinicans (and patients) with alternative treatment options with differing side effect profiles. Part of the Oxford Oncology Library, this pocketbook will summarise the latest evidence-based and practical information on the use of endrocrine therapies in the management of breast cancer (early stage, metastatic disease, and prevention of disease). With contributions from leading oncologists from the MD Anderson Cancer Center, the book covers the range of endocrine therapies currently available to clinicians including ovarian ablation, anti-estrogens, aromatase inhibitors, fulvestrant, progestins, androgens, and combination endocrine and chemotherapy. The book also includes useful chapters on the identification and optimal selection of patients for endocrine therapy as well as the role of endocrine treatments in the prevention of breast cancer. This book will serve as an invaluable reference for all health care professionals involved in the management of patients with breast cancer.

The European School of Oncology came into existence to respond to a need for informa tion, education and training in the field of the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. There are two main reasons why such an initiative was considered necessary. Firstly, the teaching of oncology requires a rigorously multidisciplinary approach which is difficult for the Univer sities to put into practice since their system is mainly disciplinary orientated. Secondly, the rate of technological development that impinges on the diagnosis and treatment of cancer has been so rapid that it is not an easy task for medical faculties to adapt their curricula flexibly. With its residential courses for organ pathologies and the seminars on new techniques (laser, monoclonal antibodies, imaging techniques etc.) or on the principal therapeutic controversies (conservative or mutilating surgery, primary or adjuvant chemotherapy, radiotherapy alone or integrated), it is the ambition of the European School of Oncology to fill a cultural and scientific gap and, thereby, create a bridge between the University and Industry and between these two and daily medical practice. One of the more recent initiatives of ESO has been the institution of permanent study groups, also called task forces, where a limited number of leading experts are invited to meet once a year with the aim of defining the state of the art and possibly reaching a consensus on future developments in specific fields of oncology.