ROCHESTER, MN — March 15, 2002 — A Mayo Clinic study indicates that Prozac® (fluoxetine) can safely and significantly relieve hot flashes in women who have been treated for breast cancer.
In this eight-week study, women experienced a 50 percent decrease in the frequency and severity of hot flashes while taking Prozac for the first four weeks of the study. Women randomized to receive a placebo during the first four weeks noted a 36 percent decrease in their hot flashes. Both groups of women were switched to the alternative substance (placebo or Prozac) during the second four-week study period.
The findings of this study are published in the March 15 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
"Our findings provide proof of principle that some of the newer antidepressants can relieve hot flashes," says Charles Loprinzi, MD, a Mayo Clinic medical oncologist and lead researcher on the study. Previous Mayo Clinic research found that Effexor, also one of the newer antidepressants, alleviated hot flashes.
"The encouraging news for women, particularly those who have had breast cancer and for whom estrogen may not be recommended, is that they have another effective alternative treatment for controlling their hot flashes," says Dr. Loprinzi.
Hot flashes affect most postmenopausal women. In women without breast cancer, hormone replacement therapy involving estrogen is the typical treatment for relief.
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