CHICAGO -- Older women receiving radiation for cancer in the pelvic area seem to run a higher risk of breaking a hip.

University of Minnesota researchers found that higher fracture rates are seen in patients with anal, rectal or cervical cancer. Nearly 30,000 American women will be diagnosed with those diseases this year.

"We found that women who underwent radiation therapy for anal cancer had a three times greater rate of fractures," said Dr. Nancy Baxter, the study's lead researcher. "Women who had radiation therapy for rectal and cervical cancer had nearly double the rate of fractures.

Nearly 6,500 women who were 65 and older when diagnosed with pelvic cancer between 1986 and 1999 were included in the study, which is published in Wednesday's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Those women already run a higher risk of fractures because bone-protecting estrogen plummets at menopause. It's not clear if the same risk applies to younger women and men with stronger bones.

"Admittedly, the technology used today and the way radiation therapy is given has improved and is better controlled than in the 1980s and 90s," Baxter said in a news release. "Nonetheless, our findings point out a concern that women who undergo radiation therapy for pelvic malignancies and their physicians need to be aware of and take precautions to prevent fractures."

Researchers encourage women undergoing radiation therapy to talk with their doctors about their risks and preventive measures, including having their bone-density levels checked.

Baxter said doctors should offer them some protection against fractures, like calcium medication.

• Study Abstract