Thousands of women at increased risk of breast cancer are set to benefit from a risk-reducing drug to be offered by Britain's National Health Service (NHS) after it was licensed for use to help prevent the disease, the state-funded health service announced on Tuesday.

Anastrozole, which has been used for many years as a breast cancer treatment, has today been licensed by the UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) as a preventive option which it is hoped could help prevent thousands of breast cancer cases in England.