Bone marrow transplantation for breast cancer is not effective

Intermediate outcomes and inadequate controls made preliminary evidence of the benefits of bone marrow transplantation for breast cancer misleading. Statements by doctors in the medical literature and the general press in the United States reinforced the presumption of benefit, as did the decision of government bodies to mandate insurance coverage. The findings of major randomised trials did not support the use of the treatment. Welch and Mogielnicki (p 1088) describe the American experience, where for more than 10 years the major dilemma was who should pay for bone marrow transplantation, not whether it worked or not. They say it provides lessons relevant to complex cancer treatments currently in development.

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    StumbleUpon    Technorati    What's this?

Relevant Article

Presumed benefit: lessons from the American experience with marrow transplantation for breast cancer

H Gilbert Welch and Juliana Mogielnicki
BMJ 2002 324: 1088-1092. [Extract] [Full Text] [PDF]