Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what research his Department has undertaken into the barriers clinicians experience in prescribing bisphosphonates for the prevention of secondary breast cancer.

No such research has been undertaken.

Although bisphosphonates are not licensed for the treatment or prevention of secondary breast cancer, there is no legal or regulatory barrier to healthcare professionals prescribing them ‘off-licence’ for this purpose on the National Health Service, subject to any local funding policies, if they believe that it is clinically appropriate to do so.

In its clinical guideline on the diagnosis and treatment of early and locally advanced breast cancer (CG80), published in February 2009, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends that bisphosphonates should be offered to patients for the management of breast cancer treatment-induced bone loss subject to certain criteria. NICE is currently updating this guidance and the use of adjuvant bisphosphonates is one of the key areas that will be covered in the update which is expected in July 2018.