Adding ibandronate to adjuvant endocrine therapy (ET) provides no long-term benefits for postmenopausal patients with estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer, according to results of a phase 3 trial published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Three years of daily oral ibandronate did not prolong disease-free survival (DFS) or reduce bone recurrences at 8.5 years of follow-up, researchers found. Although adjuvant bisphosphonate treatment has shown modest benefits in postmenopausal patients with breast cancer, the efficacy of oral nitrogen-containing bisphosphonates such as ibandronate was unclear.
