Cancer drug shown to have long-term protective effect

High-risk women who take the drug tamoxifen to prevent breast cancer stand a good chance of keeping the disease at bay for 20 years, research has shown.

The protective effect of tamoxifen lasts at least two decades, during which time it reduces breast cancer rates by around 30%, scientists found.

After 20 years, the estimated risk of developing breast cancer was 8% in women treated with tamoxifen for five years compared with 12% for women given an inactive placebo pill.