Study of Bone Mineral Density in Postmenopausal Women After Treatment for Breast Cancer

Breast cancer patients may be at increased risk for osteoporosis secondary to cancer treatment. The hypothesis of this study is that adjuvant chemotherapy increases the risk of osteoporosis in postmenopausal women. The objective of this pilot study is to describe the effects of chemotherapy on bone mineral density and serum markers of bone metabolism. There is limited data on the change in bone mineral density due to chemotherapy in postmenopausal women. This prospective study will gather data on the effects of systemic breast cancer therapy on bone mineral density in postmenopausal women receiving adjuvant care for early stage (0, I, II or III) breast cancer. Postmenopausal women are the focus of this study because: (1) they are the largest subgroup of women with breast cancer (2) they are expected to have a rate of BMD loss unless disturbed by disease or medications, unlike the pre and perimenopausal women whose BMD is dramatically affected by changes in hormonal status (3) this group of patients is at greatest risk for acute osteoporotic fractures.