Reversible Central Nervous System Dysfunction Due to Tamoxifen in a Patient with Breast Cancer

Excerpt

Tamoxifen is a nonsteroidal antiestrogen currently used primarily in the treatment of patients with hormone-receptor-positive breast cancer (1). Its major advantage over other hormonal agents is its lack of severe side effects. In fact, a recent summary of clinical trials reported that fewer than 3% of 2232 patients had serious side effects that necessitated withdrawal of tamoxifen therapy (2). Central nervous system events are rarely seen and include depression, headache, tremors, confusion, irritability, dizziness, and light-headedness (2-5). One patient has also had encephalopathy with obtundation and pseudobulbar palsy; however, this complication could have resulted from concomitant hypercalcemia (6). We report