Bone loss drugs may help prevent endometrial cancer

Women who use bisphosphonates medications commonly used to treat osteoporosis and other bone conditions have about half the risk of developing endometrial cancer as women who do not use the drugs, a new analysis shows. New analysis suggests that women who use bisphosphonates medications commonly used to treat osteoporosis and other bone conditions have about half the risk of developing endometrial cancer as women who do not use the drugs. Endometrial cancer, which arises in the lining of the uterus, accounts for nearly 50 percent of gynecologic cancers diagnosed in the United States, and it is the fourth most common malignancy in women and the eighth most common cause of cancer death. While bisphosphonates are known to prevent bone loss, preclinical studies have shown that the medications also have antitumor effects, including the ability to keep tumor cells from multiplying and from invading normal tissues. After accounting for factors including age, race, history of hormone therapy use, smoking status, and body mass index, bisphosphonate users were half as likely to develop endometrial cancer. Other studies have shown that bisphosphonates may reduce the risk of certain cancers, but we are the first to show that the risk for endometrial cancer may also be reduced. This study suggests that women who need bone strengthening medications and who have increased risk for endometrial cancer may want to choose the nitrogen form of bisphosphonates because this form may reduce the risk of endometrial cancer.