Use of anastrozole in the chemoprevention and treatment of breast cancer: A literature review

Abstract

Summary Aromatase inhibitors have emerged as an alternative endocrine therapy for the treatment of hormone sensitive breast cancer in postmenopausal women. The use of third-generation inhibitors represented by exemestane, letrozol and anastrozole is currently indicated. Anastrozole is a nonsteroidal compound and a potent selective inhibitor of the aromatase enzyme. Although a few studies have shown that its pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic properties may be affected by interindividual variability, this drug has been recently used in all configurations of breast cancer treatment. In metastatic disease, it is currently considered the first-line treatment for postmenopausal women with estrogen receptor-positive breast tumors. Anastrozole has shown promising results in the adjuvant treatment of early-stage breast cancer in postmenopausal women. It has also achieved interesting results in the chemoprevention of the disease. Therefore, due to the importance of anastrozole both for endocrine treatment and chemoprevention of hormone-sensitive breast cancer in postmenopausal women, we proposed the current literature review in the SciELO and PubMed database of articles published in the last 10 years.