Tamoxifen does not form detectable DNA adducts in white blood cells of breast cancer patients

• Published in: Carcinogenesis (New York) Vol. 17; no. 5; pp. 1149 - 1152
• Main Authors: Phillips, David H., Hewer, Alan, Grover, Philip L., Poon, Grace K., Carmichael, Paul L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Oxford University Press 01.05.1996
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Antineoplastic Agents, Hormonal - metabolism; Biological and medical sciences; Breast Neoplasms - drug therapy; DNA Adducts - analysis; Drug toxicity and drugs side effects treatment; Estrogen Antagonists - metabolism; Female; Humans; Leukocytes - metabolism; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Miscellaneous (drug allergy, mutagens, teratogens...); Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Tamoxifen - metabolism; Tamoxifen - therapeutic use; Antineoplastic agent; Human; Leukocyte; Toxicity; Antiestrogen; Adjuvant treatment; Antihormone; Malignant tumor; Tamoxifene; Mammary gland diseases; Blood cell; Chemotherapy; DNA; Female; Mammary gland; Molecular adduct
• ISSN: 0143-3334; 1460-2180
• DOI: 10.1093/carcin/17.5.1149

DNA from white blood cells of seven women receiving tamoxifen as adjuvant therapy for breast cancer and of three women who served as healthy controls was analysed for the presence of tamoxifen-DNA adducts using 32P-postlabelling with a limit of detection of 8 adducts/1010 nucleotides. No postlabelled adducts with the chromato-graphic properties of known tamoxifen-DNA adducts were detected in any of the samples. It is concluded that at therapeutic levels of exposure there is no significant formation of DNA adducts by tamoxifen or its metabolites in circulating white blood cells.