National Comprehensive Cancer Network

About NCCN

NCCN Updates Breast Cancer Risk Reduction Guidelines

JENKINTOWN, Pa., February 13, 2007 — The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) announces updates to the NCCN Breast Cancer Risk Reduction Guidelines. The NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology™ are widely recognized and applied as the standard for care in oncology in both the community practice setting and in academic cancer centers. These guidelines are updated continually and are based upon evaluation of scientific data integrated with expert judgment.

One major change in the 2007 version of the guidelines is the addition of raloxifene (Evista®, Eli Lilly) as a breast cancer risk reduction agent for healthy postmenopausal women at increased risk of breast cancer. This addition follows publication of the results of the Study of Tamoxifen and Raloxifene (STAR) trial, which directly compared the efficacy and safety of raloxifene versus tamoxifen for postmenopausal women 35 years or older at increased risk of invasive breast cancer. Results demonstrated that raloxifene was as effective as tamoxifen in reducing the risk of invasive cancer in the study population. The NCCN panel recommends that the choice of a risk reduction agent should be individualized and decided as part of a shared decision-making process between patient and physician.

NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology™ are developed and updated through a consensus-driven process with explicit review of the scientific evidence by multidisciplinary panels of expert physicians from NCCN Member Institutions. The most recent version of this and all the guidelines are available free of charge at www.nccn.org.

For questions about NCCN or for interview information, please contact Megan Martin 215.690.0576.

About the National Comprehensive Cancer Network

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN), a not-for-profit alliance of 21 of the world’s leading cancer centers, is dedicated to improving the quality and effectiveness of care provided to patients with cancer. Through the leadership and expertise of clinical professionals at NCCN Member Institutions, NCCN develops resources that present valuable information to the numerous stakeholders in the health care delivery system. As the arbiter of high-quality cancer care, NCCN promotes the importance of continuous quality improvement and recognizes the significance of creating clinical practice guidelines appropriate for use by patients, clinicians, and other health care decision-makers. The primary goal of all NCCN initiatives is to improve the quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of oncology practice so patients can live better lives. For more information, visit NCCN.org.

The NCCN Member Institutions are:

• City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center
  Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center
• Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center
• Fox Chase Cancer Center
• Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center / Seattle Cancer Care Alliance
• The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins
• Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University
• Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
• H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
• The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute
• Roswell Park Cancer Institute
• Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine
• St. Jude Children's Research Hospital / University of Tennessee Cancer Institute
• Stanford Comprehensive Cancer Center
• University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center
• UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
• University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center
• UNMC Eppley Cancer Center at The Nebraska Medical Center
• The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
• Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center