Optimising endocrine approaches for the chemoprevention of breast cancer : Beyond the Study of Tamoxifen and Raloxifene (STAR) Trial

The completion of the Study of Tamoxifen and Raloxifene (STAR) [Vogel VG, Costantino JP, Wickerham DL, et al. The Study of Tamoxifen and Raloxifene (STAR): Report of the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project P-2 Trial. JAMA 2006;295:2727-2741.] and the ongoing studies with aromatase inhibitors [Goss PE. Breast cancer prevention–clinical trials strategies involving aromatase inhibitors. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 2003;86(3-5):487-93.] to assess their worth for the chemoprevention of breast cancer, creates an opportunity to consider the realistic future for chemoprevention as an option for women’s healthcare and to identify strategies for future progress in an era of targeted therapeutics, managed healthcare and soaring costs.