The use of the non-selective androgen HALOMED 5 (Fluoxymesterone) in patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC)

HALOMED 5 (Fluoxymesterone) is a synthetic androgen or male hormone, in its action, it is similar to testosterone. HALOMED 5 (Fluoxymesterone) is used to treat women with hormone-dependent breast cancer. It works by attaching itself to androgen receptors, what in turn, causes it to interact with the parts of the cell involved in the making of proteins. This process may cause an increase in the synthesis of some proteins or a decrease in the synthesis of others. These proteins have a variety of effects, including blocking the growth of some types of breast cancer cells. Finding and treating breast cancer in the early stages is extremely important, as this allows many women to be cured.

Metastatic breast cancer also referred to as metastases, advanced breast cancer, secondary tumours, secondaries or stage 4 breast cancer, is a stage of breast cancer where the disease has spread to another part of the body, most commonly the liver, brain, bones, or lungs. At this stage cancer cells can break away from the original tumor in the breast and travel to other parts of the body through the bloodstream or the lymphatic system, which serves as a large network of nodes and vessels that works to remove bacteria, viruses, and cellular waste products. The thing is, that breast cancer can return in another part of the body months or years after the original diagnosis and treatment.

There is no cure for metastatic breast cancer, this disease is not hopeless. Many patients continue to live long and productive lives with breast cancer in this stage. Although metastatic breast cancer is unlikely to be cured, there have been meaningful improvements in survival rate due to a wide variety of effective treatment options available, including endocrine therapy (ET) in the treatment of hormone-sensitive disease. ET alone or in combination with targeted agents can be a great help in fighting the disease. Also, new medicines are being tested every day. For this stage of breast cancer, treatment is often given for as long as the drug is helpful. If one treatment stops working, there is usually another one.

HALOMED 5 (Fluoxymesterone) is used for the treatment of metastatic breast cancer in menopausal women who have hormone receptor-positive tumors. The use of the non-selective androgen HALOMED 5 (Fluoxymesterone) in patients with metastatic breast cancer (MBC) reduced in the 1960s because of its adverse side effects. Although HALOMED 5 (Fluoxymesterone) has proved its efficacy against tamoxifen-resistant disease in clinical studies, today its role in cancer treatment is unclear. However, recent studies have shown that the androgen–androgen receptor (AR) complex acts as a suppressor of the estrogen receptor (ER)+ breast cancer. When Fluoxymesterone is used as a breast cancer treatment, this drug blocks the growth of tumor cells that are dependent on female hormones to grow. That is important to note, that HALOMED 5 (Fluoxymesterone) can be used only on female breast cancer patients who have reached menopause one to five years earlier, or as a result of surgery. HALOMED 5 (Fluoxymesterone) can be used in addition to other chemotherapeutic drugs, such as tamoxifen or cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, and fluorouracil.