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Chemo for Breast Cancer: Every 2 weeks or 3?

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Last Modified: January 22, 2006

Dear OncoLink "Ask The Experts,"

I am a 49-yr old woman who has just been diagnosed with breast cancer. Going for the whole wash, cut, and blow dry. My question is - reading about chemo, every two weeks works better than every three. One article says great, the other says the results were disappointing. What is the scoop?

Kevin R. Fox, MD, Assistant Director, Clinical Affairs and Associate Professor of Hematology/Oncology at the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania, responds:

For patients at a high risk of breast cancer recurrence (especially patients with positive lymph nodes and negative estrogen receptors), chemotherapy every two weeks may be superior to every three, and that is generally what we recommend. Otherwise, chemotherapy every three weeks is standard treatment.