Britain Updates Safety Advice on Tamoxifen LONDON (Reuters Health) - Britain's Medicines Control Agency (MCA) has advised doctors to investigate the potential risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE)--a blood clot that blocks a blood vessel--in patients with breast cancer before prescribing tamoxifen. The advice follows results earlier this year from the International Breast Cancer Intervention Study, which showed that the risk of such clots was more than doubled in women taking the drug compared with placebo. In March 2002, the study chairman recommended that women should no longer be prescribed tamoxifen for the prevention of breast cancer and the Department of Health sent a message to this effect to all healthcare providers. The Committee on Safety of Medicines subsequently considered how the risk of VTE should be managed in patients who have breast cancer and are using tamoxifen. Publishing in Current Problems in Pharmacovigilance, the committee advises doctors to obtain a careful personal and family history of VTE before starting treatment. Use of blood-thinning drugs, or anticoagulants, may also be justified in some patients. If VTE occurs, doctors should stop tamoxifen therapy immediately and begin therapeutic measures to dissolve the clot. [11/13/2002; Reuters Health] Remember we are NOT Doctors and have NO medical training. This site is like an Encylopedia - there are many pages, many links on many topics. Support our work with any size DONATION - see left side of any page - for how to donate. You can help raise awareness of CAM.