Lung Cancer Health Center

Tamoxifen May Cut Lung Cancer Deaths

Tamoxifen for Lung Cancer: Second View

The study finding ''makes sense based on what we have seen in the lab," says Carolyn M. Klinge, PhD, professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the University of Louisville, who reviewed the study findings for WebMD. She has done basic research in the laboratory on lung cancer cells.

In her research, she found that lung adenocarcinoma cells sometimes grew when treated with estradiol, a potent natural estrogen, and sometimes did not.

On looking further, she discovered that the cells that originated from women grew, but those from men did not.

Tamoxifen for Lung Cancer: The Future

''The question now is not whether there is an effect [of tamoxifen on lung cancer] but just how big it really is," Rapiti says. 

The value of tamoxifen for lung cancer treatment will probably be in a select group of patients, she says.