Dramatic Antitumor Effect of Megestrol Acetate in a Metastatic Breast Cancer Premenopausal Patient During Hospice Care

Abstract

Hormone manipulation is the main therapy for hormone receptor positive breast cancers. Megestrol acetate, a synthetic progesterone derivative, is a hormone therapy for metastatic breast and endometrial cancers and also an important palliative treatment for cancer-related anorexia and cachexia. We report a dramatic response to megestrol acetate in a 40-year-old woman with extensive liver metastasis from hormone receptor-positive breast cancer. She refused any antitumor treatment for metastatic disease because of major depression and poor experience with prior adjuvant chemotherapy. She was admitted to hospice ward and received megestrol acetate for anorexia and unintentional weight loss. Unexpectedly, her tumors regressed considerably and she lived for 2 more years. Megestrol acetate remains an important hormone therapy for metastatic breast cancer, especially in patients with anorexia and cachexia.