| "NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - A new study shows that group "talk" therapy may help women with advanced breast cancer feel better, but it probably won't prolong their lives, with one exception. Women in the study with estrogen-receptor negative, or ER-negative, tumors did seem to reap a survival benefit from group therapy." "Unlike ER-positive breast tumors, ER-negative breast tumors are not fed by the hormone estrogen and as a result are especially hard to treat. These tumors are not affected by the most successful breast cancer drugs, such as tamoxifen and the newer aromatase inhibitors." "The yearlong study included 125 women with "metastatic" breast cancer, cancer that has spread to other areas of the body, and 3 women with recurrent breast cancer. The 64 subjects took part in weekly group meetings designed to build new bonds of social support, encourage expression of emotions, and deal with fears, pain and anxiety, had similar survival rates as the 61 women provided only with educational materials to read on their own. " "Overall, women who attended supportive group therapy survived for an average of 31 months, while women who received literature only survived an average of 33 months, Dr. David Spiegel of Stanford University, California and colleagues report in the journal Cancer. " "This finding contradicts earlier studies, including studies by Spiegel's team, which found that group supportive-expressive therapy for women with advanced breast cancer improved survival." ""It is clear," Spiegel told Reuters Health, "that group support can help breast cancer patients to live better but it is not clear whether it also helps them to live longer."" "However, in the current study, women with ER-negative tumors who attended group therapy did live longer than women with ER-negative tumors
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