The drug Zometa (zoledronic acid) may help breast cancer sufferers by improving the effects of chemotherapy, this way helping women avoid an unpleasant mastectomy, a team of British researchers claims.

Usually used for treating osteoporosis, the bone-strengthening drug Zometa showed positive results in the phase 3 Austrian Breast & Colorectal Cancer Study Group Trial 12 (ABCSG-12. It seems that, when used together with standard chemotherapy, Zometa is able to cut the risk of recurrence in some pre-menopausal women.

According to Dr. Robert Coleman of the University of Sheffield in England, the findings are expected to determine more clinical trials, as they represent the “first patient related evidence.” Dr. Coleman presented the findings at the 31st Annual San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS).

The study involved more than 200 female participants diagnosed with early stage breast cancer. They were assigned to one of the two groups: some were given Zometa, in conjunction with chemotherapy, and others underwent chemotherapy only. The treatment’s purpose was to diminish the size of tumors before surgery.

The study revealed that participants who got both Zometa and chemotherapy before surgery had a 33% greater drop in the size of their primary tumor, compared to participants who only received chemotherapy.

Additionally, researchers also found that 65.3 % of the women in the group that combines chemotherapy with Zometa needed their breasts to be removed, in contrast with 77.9% in the other group.