Hormone therapy nearly doubles risk of death from lung cancer, study says

[Heidi]

Source: Los Angeles Times

The link to lung cancer in women raises the question of whether hormone replacement therapy 'has any role in medicine today,' one expert says.

September 20, 2009

Hormone replacement therapy, already linked to increased risk of breast cancer, heart disease and stroke, nearly doubles a woman's risk of dying from lung cancer, researchers reported Saturday in a finding that may be the final blow for a therapy that is already in rapidly declining use.

The findings "seriously question whether hormone-replacement therapy has any role in medicine today," Dr. Apar Kishor Ganti of the University of Nebraska Medical Center wrote in an editorial accompanying the online publication of the report in the medical journal Lancet.

The link to lung cancer "is yet another reason to not use hormone replacement therapy if it can be avoided," said Dr. Mark Faries, director of translational tumor immunology at the John Wayne Cancer Institute in Santa Monica, who was not involved in the research. "It raises the bar for deciding to do HRT."

The findings come from the Women's Health Initiative, a large study originally begun in 1991 to demonstrate, in part, that the administration of a combination of estrogen and progestin could relieve debilitating symptoms of menopause and reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke. The hormone replacement part of the study, which enrolled more than 16,000 women, was halted prematurely after about 5 1/2 years when it was observed that the risks far outweighed any potential benefits.


Read more: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-estrogen20-2009sep20,0,909650.story

[notadmblnd]

1. For me, I dont think the symptoms are that debilitating

I wouldn't consider for a moment hormone therapy. Yes, hot flashes are a pain in the ass, but nothing compared the the 7 days of hell I used to go through.

[ladywnch]

31. you're lucky. I used to go through the 7 days of hell too but

early menopause (due to chemo therapy) was even worse. I couldn't sleep through the night for waking up soaking wet, then freezing, the soaking wet. Sleep depravation was really getting to me. I was able to find natural OTC products that worked though.

[Raschel]

58. Can you tell me what OTC products you found helpful? Thanks!

:hi:

[ladywnch]

60. I'm afraid it's been awhile. I'll have to go to the drug store and look.

send me an email so I won't lose your contact info and I'll answer if I can find it again.

[Raschel]

62. That's okay.

I'm always looking at different boards for ideas. Thank you very much for your reply. :hi:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

2. It always seemed to me that

Mother Nature knew what she was doing when certain hormones started to dry up. The natural rhythm of the human body in relation to the earth. Life and death. That's how it goes.

Science said otherwise, and came up with HRT.

Fortunately, only women were involved. I wonder if such a risky idea would have gained the kind of worldwide popularity HRT gained if it was for men.

Now we are finding out more and more that HRT isn't a good idea.

It's not nice to fool Mother Nature...............

[Heidi]

3. To be honest, I've looked forward to menopause since I was 12.

And I'm still looking forward to it. It's interesting that so many menopausal women in my family in the US have had either hysterectomies or HRT. I don't know any women in my husband's family in Europe who've had HRT; only one woman in his family has had a hysterectomy.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

4. Hysterectomies used to be done

as routine "cures" for things like fibroids, which are now treated in a variety of ways. But, MDs had this thing - if you're done with that uterus, why keep it?

Of course, if it were their testicles that were involved, the song would have been completely different.

Things have changed medically, but I still remember going with my mother to her gynecologist - she had a minor problem - and after he recommended a D&C, just to be safe, we went to see the head of the OB-GYN department at a major metropolitan teaching hospital here in the DC area. One of the best.

The doctor there agreed with the first physician's assessment, and we were quite pleased. An easy enough, outpatient procedure. She was nervous, but all right with it, and relieved that it wasn't anything serious.

Then, this man, who was immensely obese, told her he'd be writing her a prescription for hormones.

She was sixty-seven years old, and had gone through menopause fifteen or sixteen years earlier.

I said I didn't think that was either necessary or a good idea.

He glared at me. "Every woman needs hormone replacement therapy!" he thundered.

No, I said. She's not going to take them.

That was the end of that, she was fine, lived another twenty years without any problems, and that fat fuck died a few months after our appointment. Heart attack.

That was the common thinking here. Can you imagine?

Trust me - after menopause, it's hard to remember that you ever even had a period. Sleeping through the night, no cramps, no bloating, no craving, no mood swings.

Well, that part about the mood swings.................... :)

[avaistheone1]

6. Hysterectomies are money makers for surgeons, and hysterectomies are not always the best solution.

Always get a second opinion.

[Le Taz Hot]

13. They're also medically necessary

in many cases and I was one of those. I had fibroids in my uterus and a cyst on my ovary. For four years I suffered sporadic and debilitating periods. I finally decided to get the hysterectomy and it was the best thing I ever did. No more suffering. We have to be careful not to throw the baby out with the bathwater here. If a woman needs a hysterectomy, she should get one and it needs to be guilt free.

[ccinamon]

15. +1....I had terrible pain,

every month for years, I was even on muscle relaxers several times, finally got so bad with the bleeding and the pain I had a hysterectomy...the best part, my mood swings went way down and I became less volatile...family was very happy!

I think in my case (not only did I had fibroids, I had endometrosis, and ovarian cysts), I think my body was pumping out too much hormones....for me, hysterectomy was a very good option and it was stupid that I had to wait so long to get one!

[noiretextatique]

56. right...i am in the same situation right now +

i am on tamoxifen, which can cause uterine cancer. i got some of the best news of my life after i had an ultrasound a month ago: fibroids in my uterus and a cyst on my ovary. so now i can can get a hysterectomy that will spare me the possibility of uterine cancer caused by the drug i take. and since i have a higher risk for other cancers, i am going to have my ovaries removed too. my gynecologist was trying to be conservative, but why should i keep my uterus and possibly develop uterine cancer? i am eagerly anticipating my hysterectomy.

[avaistheone1]

61. Just trying to point out there are often other alternatives that some surgeons will not point out.

[DeSwiss]

11. Ah yes, mood swings.....

...the worst equipment on the playground.

[kdmorris]

17. Still are, in a lot of cases

Several years ago, I went to the doctor for prolapse. She said she could fix it, but it wasn't until 2 weeks before the surgery that she mentioned she would be doing a hysterectomy. I was 37 years old. She said they could "probably" keep the ovaries there, but, if not, HRT was the way to go.

I refused the surgery, but I was so angry that she NEVER made clear that her solution was to rip out my uterus and put me into early menopause.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

44. That's horrible!

I honestly thought the damn medical profession had caught up.

There are all sorts of things to be done for prolapse. In Europe, pessaries are normal, as I understand it.

You're so young, and she was gonna do that? "Probably keep the ovaries"? As if there was anything WRONG with your ovaries?

Man, oh, man, I'm glad you refused................... :hug:

[kdmorris]

48. I found a different doctor

and he gave me a pessary. That had never, ever been mentioned by the other doctor. She had the nerve to say "well, what would you do if you had cancer?" as if the two were comparable. I looked her in the eye and said "THEN I would have a hysterectomy, but, right now, there is NOTHING whatsoever wrong with me that requires a hysterectomy".

For a long time, I just kept saying "but she was a woman doctor"... I'm not really sure what I meant by that, but I guess I somehow thought that a woman would understand how I felt about it.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

49. It was a woman doctor who told me, when I was

in my late thirties, that my fibroids required a complete - yes, complete - hysterectomy.

After I stopped crying, sitting in my car, I found another doctor who had a whole different take on it, and I am still intact.

I did, though, go after that woman "ob-gyn," who had been abrupt and downright mean when she delivered her diagnosis and prognosis to me. A nastier bit of business I'd never encountered as a patient. Something about her - besides her hateful treatment of me - didn't ring true.

I set a fellow attorney on it, checking her out, and it turned out she was NOT certified as an ob-gyn, that she'd never even done a residency in that particular area, and was holding herself out as one under false pretenses.

I filed a formal complaint against her, and she went out of business. I have no idea what she did next, but I do know her license was suspended. She probably got it back and started a practice somewhere else.

But NOT as an ob-gyn.

We expect better from women, that's why you kept saying it. Why I went to her, on the recommendation of - yes - a bunch of lesbian friends who loved her.........................

[dotymed]

18. My Mother, now 73,

has been on HRT for years. She had a lot of problems with
menopause. She now has severe breathing problems and has to
use a forced Oxygen mask at night. I wonder if that has
anything to do with HRT? She smoked for maybe three years
while she was in her thirties...

[Tangerine LaBamba]

45. Is she still on it?

Ask her doctor. I am so sorry she's having trouble. I don't think - do you? - that smoking for such a short time so long ago would have caused her to have lung troubles.

I hope she'll get better. I wish you both good luck.................:hug:

[dotymed]

50. Thanks

She has Heart Failure also. I don't know if she is still on HRT. I will ask her. I don't think the cigarettes contributed.

[enlightenment]

27. Tangerine, it worked out fine for you, but it doesn't for

every woman.

Some women trade relatively mild menstrual symptoms for an absolute nightmare of menopausal symptoms. Some go through hell before and after. Some women have peri-menopausal symptoms for a decade or more before they finally reach menopause.

You apparently were lucky - but no offense, "Trust me" ain't gonna cut it for a lot of women.

I'm not arguing for HRT, because doctors currently use a one-size-fits-all approach to something that needs tailoring for each individual. I am suggesting that not every woman is as fortunate as you were.

My mother is almost 89 years old and she still suffers from hot flashes that are so severe that she has to get up at least once in the night to change her nightgown, dry her hair, change out soaked pillows . . . she has to sleep on incontinence pads so she doesn't soak the mattress. She's been tested for every disease known to man - the only issue they can figure is that she's still suffering menopausal symptoms - she's been doing this for over 30 years. Her old doctor didn't want her to take HRT because of the 'risks' - she finally decided to go see a female doc, who weighed the risks against the benefits and gave her a very low dosage of estrogen. She said, and I agree, that it's a 'quality of life' issue.

For the first time in my adult life, she is sleeping through the night.

It's just not the same for everyone.

[musette_sf]

34. + 1

thanks for sharing...

bio-identical HRT has made a huge difference in my life. one size indeed does not fit all.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

46. Oh, man .......

I was speaking anecdotally, from my own personal experience. I would never presume to give medical advice, but, based on my limited experience, I found that HRT was deadly for the women I know.

Your poor mother! That's about as awful a story as I've ever heard. But, it's hardly the norm, and, as you say, the therapy should be carefully designed for each patient.

I'm glad she's doing better, and I'm very glad that you told your story. I'll be repeating it, of that you can be sure.

But, the simple truth is that the matter of HRT has been carried to absurd lengths, and "Trust me" is not a bad place to start until everything else is eliminated as a cause of whatever problem the patient is having. Sure beats diving headfirst into an HRT regimen that could prove deadly...........................

[notadmblnd]

36. I know what you mean about hysterectomies

My sisters and I are the first generation of women in my family who haven't had something ripped out. I guess as another poster said, I must be lucky, because I find menopause to be liberating, not a burden.

[Mari333]

52. menopause is great!!!!

I was 50, periods just stopped. no mood swings, no hot flashes. it was great!! I had a party.

[Heidi]

55. You mean I could have four more years to wait?!??!

There's only one thing at the top of my Christmas list every year. Still, nothin'. :weep:

[demigoddess]

5. I saw that YEARS ago when I went through 'the change'.

If you understand one thing, the human body is not made to be on that revved up state that we need for procreation, and childbirth. We need to slow down hormonally speaking for our good health. I felt more myself after the change than before. Ps. I didn't have any symptoms. Only 25 percent of women have any.

[avaistheone1]

7. I feel good and look pretty good too.

I don't think I need HRT at all.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

9. You don't -

we're supposed to run out of hormones. The change of life, as it was called, is a normal, natural event. The American medical culture has managed to turn it into a medical matter, an ailment, an affliction.

I had no symptoms. None. My friends have had varying experiences, but one - I would not have believed it if I hadn't seen it - was having a hell of a time with hot flashes.

We were having lunch in a restaurant, and she muttered, "Oh, no." By the time we could ask her what was wrong, her face was bright red, and her beautiful silvery gray silk blouse was dark gray and soaking wet. I could not believe it. She went on HRT, but only until the menopause was complete.

Another friend, a smoker whose sister had had breast cancer, was on such a high estrogen dose, she started getting periods again! I was aghast, but she thought nothing of it.

She was diagnosed with breast cancer two years ago. Had a mastectomy, quit smoking, and she's doing fine.

But, now, reading about the statistics on lung cancer, I'm even more worried about her.....................

[Alameda]

21. I didn't even realize I went through it....

until a couple of years with no periods. Then I thought, hmmm...guess I must have gone through "it". It's wonderful not to have the bloating, pain of cramps and stained garments.

[Donnachaidh]

24. I didn't have any symptoms either

And I was doing handsprings when I finally could stop buying all the pads, plugs and Midol. I had one doctor tell me I should get HRT, but when I asked why he didn't have a good answer. It was *wel, everyone should do it*.

My grandmother lived into her late 80's with NO hrt. WHY take something that is going to potentially cause you more problems later on?

[madamesilverspurs]

8. Yep, my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer

after decades on HRT. She had her second mastectomy at age 81. With that history I told my doctor there was no way I was going that route. Unfortunately, I listened to a friend who recommended an herbal tea to relieve the hot flashes; said tea did relieve the hot flashes but was likely the source of a blood clot in the lung that almost killed me. That was a very unpleasant way to learn the lesson that 'natural' remedies also require close attention. Take care, ladies!

[Jane Austin]

10. Do they report what happens

when they leave out the progesterone?

[CountAllVotes]

33. good point

If you read the study, it is based on estrogen and progestine use, not estrogen alone.

:kick:

[Jane Austin]

41. I asked my GYN doc about the reports of unterine cancer a few years ago,

and he pointed out that it was only so when they used progesterone with the estrogen.

What I want to know is who is trying to make older women pee on themselves?

Depends™ ? :)

[CountAllVotes]

42. estrogen does a lot for women's bodies

has something like over 400 things it does that are noted. It controls many other aspects of the female body. I won't bother to go into any details except that you are pretty messed up if you have had a hysterectomy that was medically necessary (that or death is the choice) and had no option but to have both ovaries removed as well. :(

In this type of situation, estrogen is very important and necessary, I know that much!

:kick:

[noiretextatique]

59. my mom is 76, in excellent health and she had a complete hysterectomy

in her 40's with no HRT :shrug: i think it depends on the individual.

[LeftyMom]

63. My mom had hers in her late 30's and couldn't absorb the oral hormones,

so they put her on patches and she turned out to be allergic, so she had to go on injections. Then she had several blood clots and went off of the HRT in case that was related. No blood clots since, and she has fewer menopause symptoms than she did on the shot- she figured that keeping her levels in-between was pretty miserable, and her body's adjusted to it's natural low nicely. Then again, her mother went through menopause naturally very young and had her last period before she was 40, so Mom probably would have started to taper down on her own right around the time she had her goodies out. With a proper history instead of a one-size-fits-all approach, her HRT after surgery should probably have tapered down similarly to the natural process.

[Go2Peace]

12. They really need to distinguish between bioidentical vs traditional hormone therapy

More study needs to be done, but most everything I have read that has showed these links has been with traditional pharmacological versions of these hormones, which are from different sources and processes than other bioidentical cousins.

[musette_sf]

35. + 1

[fasttense]

14. I did not know the statistics for hot flashes were so low.

I'm still transitioning through the change, and I get hot flashes 3 to 4 times a day. But luckily for me, there is very little sweating. Mostly just a slight blush then the back of my neck gets wet. My Mom went through the same thing and my sister's were so bad she had to take a medication (not hormones) for it.

Have you noticed other symptoms? I have an increased sense of smell. I can smell the pollen in the air and when the neighbor, 10 miles down the road, got some sheep. When my husband mows, I can not only smell the cut grass, but the type of weeds he has cut.

For awhile there, I was getting headaches once a month non-stop for a week instead of a period, but thankfully that has stopped. But with the headaches came this strange ability to hear everything. I could hear a pin drop in a cornfield. Ok that's an exaggeration but I swear the days and nights sound like a symphony with all these different insects, animals and foliage, moving, singing and eating. Thank God, I live in the country. I wonder what it would have been like in the city?

I have the ability to empathize with anyone and anything that is near me, even animals. I am a 20 year military woman, so I was a pretty tough cookie. Now, I'm collecting strays and when someone near me tells of their pain, I swear I can feel it too.

So, will I lose all these strange abilities when I'm through transitioning out of my reproductive life? Or is menopause really a continual change?

[ccinamon]

16. wow....I didn't notice any increase in hearing or smell...

I'm on year 6 of menopause, the hot flashes aren't as severe or as often, but now I get cold chills....If I drink something hot, I get hot, if I drink something very cold (milk shake, drinks with ice), I get cold....all very wierd.

I'm glad the hot flashes are waning...for someone who rarely sweats and was always cold, having heat flashes was hard....so was changing the way I dress...shorts and tank tops and light weight clothing...even in the winter! From what I could tell, my hot flashes weren't even the worse they could have been....still, my family thought it was funny that I would get hot for no reason and start shedding clothes and complain about how hot the stores were!

I think menopause is one of the few conditions that might have a wide variety of symptoms...not everyone even has hot flashes!

[BumRushDaShow]

22. Agree about the "wide variety of symptoms"

Seems "hot flashes" are universally talked about and I'm getting them about once or twice an hour for about 3-5 minutes and I try to keep my environment cool (fans, AC). But for those of us who have had total hysterectomies that sent us into immediate menopause (mine for a large ovarian cyst), what I have found missing in the discussions were "acute joint pains" (that eventually taper off), "dry mucus membranes" (not always vaginal that is oft-talked about but sinuses!!!), and dry skin. Am toughing this out and letting my body readjust itself. Am afraid to add any hormones back because I feel that scientists have no clue how the HRT hormone types interact with all the OTHER hormones in the body (including how those others may increase or decrease in response to the levels of estrogen and progesterone).

But boy to not have weeks on end of bleeding and cramps, always ending up having a period when traveling, etc.... what a difference!

[Klukie]

19. I got an increased sense of smell when I was pregnant with my kids...

and I was extremely hormonal. They are four and six now and I haven't completely lost that heightened ability but it comes and goes now. I will have to pay attention and see if it corresponds with my cycles in any way. I always chalked it up to my new need to be able to smell when they pooped in their diapers (Ha). It is very interesting.

[madmom]

20. No HRT here either. Doc told me if I had any problems with hot flashes and such to

take Black Cohash. Took it for awhile, but kept forgetting so I just stopped. I have very minimal hot flashes, mostly at night I wake up sweating, throw off the blankets and go back to sleep. One thing I was wondering though, I started drinking soy milk and when I do it's seems I start "spotting" I learned that soy will make women ovulate. Has anyone else had this problem? It makes me made because I like soy milk and would rather drink that, than regular milk, any alternatives?

[BuddhaGirl]

23. you could drink almond milk

it's delicious.

Soy has estrogenic properties.

[LeftyMom]

64. So Delicious makes a coconut milk based drink that's fantastic.

That, and chocolate flavored hemp and almond milks are the only milk-type drinks I'll drink straight.

[nolabear]

25. I've had some pretty interesting symptoms

the worst of which was a terrible time sleeping. I'd just lie there barely below the surface all night long. Night sweats were wierder than I thought they'd be (I'd wake up with this feeling of impending doom, my muscles would cramp, my skin prickle like I was wearing an itchy sweater), and anomia drives me nuts. I can't think of words for things, and I'm a smart woman who's a writer. But my family also has a history of cancer and I was terrified to take anything. And over time it's gotten a lot better. I'm really glad I didn't do HRT.

Let's face it. We get old and it's hard. Women have this marker that underscores it, but those inevitable breakdowns of the equipment come to us all. I suggest we slow down, take advantage of it (I haven't moved a piece of furniture in years) and consider ourselves worthy of respect and a little cosseting. Would somebody hand me my fan and an iced tea? Pretty please?

[Doremus]

29. Here y'go nolabear.

I'll join you. :pals:

[Bigmack]

47. Ya got a point ...

It's hard to get old(er). Men have those damn pesky prostates, women's breasts and uteruses start to act up.

Gitten old ain't fer sissies..... but it's better than the dirt nap.

[jwirr]

26. There are several actions that are called hormone therapy. I am

assuming this is talking only about the estrogen/progestin combination? Many of us take or have taken just estrogen.

[Triana]

28. They tried to put my Mom on that crap years ago. It caused her more problems

than she had and she got off it in short order. Her menopause symptom weren't bad to start with (she says almost non-existent) but since doctors consider anything female an 'ailment' and females perpetual medical experiments (not to mention a nice way to make profits for the pharma industry) he stuck her on the crap.

I think most women DO NOT need it and it causes more issues than it helps. I WILL NOT be using it.

[OnionPatch]

30. I envy those of you who don't have symptoms.

My hot flashes were so severe and came so often, I was constantly sleep deprived which made me exhausted, depressed and fog-brained. I kept forgetting important things at work, snapping at my family, and so on. The hot flashes didn't fade away after a year or two like I hoped so I'm on bioidenticals right now. It's scary but the thought of living without sleep again is too. I wish I could breeze through naturally like so many seem to be able to. That was my original plan. :(

[ladywnch]

32. I sympathize with you. I had horrible cramps my whole life and then

wicked menopause. Like you the sleep deprivation was brutal. I finally understood why so many women go crazy - it isn't necessarily the hormone shift, it is the sleep deprivation that it creates coupled with the regular mood swings.....it was brutal.

[musette_sf]

38. + 1

[mainer]

53. Another sleep-deprived, brain-fogged woman here. I gave up.

For a year and a half I tried to handle it "naturally." I gobbled up black cohosh and soy. I cut out caffeine (hard) and alcohol (even harder) from my diet. Like you I didn't sleep. I'd wake up four or five times a night with my heart pounding and my sheets soaked in sweat. Each time, it would take me an hour to get back to slelep. The next day I'd wander around in a sleep-deprived state, unable to think, my brain total mush. My career was built on my creative powers, and I'd lost them. I felt as if I was undergoing early Alzheimer's disease.

Finally, I decided that I'd had enough of this "natural menopause" bullshit. I went on HRT, and within a month I got my brain back.

I feel like a failure for not being able to "tough" it out. Then my mom told me how bad her menopause was -- I remember her multiple suicide attempts, her profound depression, her hours-long crying jags -- and I realize that it may just be genetics that dictates how badly we suffer from menopause.

I know there are risks to HRT. But the alternative -- losing my mental acuity and my ability to function in a demanding career -- is even worse.

[musette_sf]

65. "within a month I got my brain back"

you describe exactly what i went through. it really felt like i was losing my mind and it was scary.

the alternative to (bio-identical HRT) - losing my mental acuity and my ability to function in a demanding career - is unacceptable to me.

as far as genetics go, both my mother and sister had a completely uneventful menopause. :shrug:

[devinkay]

37. VERY important distinction!

Please note that this article refers to a study about the "administration of a combination of estrogen and PROGESTIN."

Progestin is not PROGESTERONE.

Progesterone is the female hormone produced naturally in the corpus luteum for the two weeks following ovulation that provides several benefits, including:

- Prepares the lining of the uterus for implantation of the fertilized egg
- Improves fat burning at the cellular level
- Natural antidepressant
- Improves sleep pattern
- Helps keep insulin release in check
- Prevention of overgrowth of lining of the uterus
- Prevents breast tissue overgrowth
- Supports sex drive
- Helps maintain normal blood clotting
- Protects against fibrocystic disease

It's easily and cheaply manufactured from common yams and soy beans. Being naturally occurring it isn't patentable and therefore not a money maker for the drug companies.

Progestin is a patented synthetic hormone that has nothing to do with progesterone. It has been known to cause bleeding, clotting, and cancer. But it's a money maker.

You do the math.

The drug companies have been engaged in a misinformation campaign for years to conflate progestin and progesterone until many doctors have begun using the terms interchangeably and progestin (brand name Provera) exclusively.

PROGESTERONE good, PROGESTIN bad. In other words, HRT isn't the problem; bad drugs, widespread misunderstanding, and improper prescription are.

Recommended reading:

http://blog.rmghc.com/?p=17
http://www.project-aware.org/Resource/articlearchives/differences.shtml
http://drhotzeblog.netymology.com/2006/05/23/progesterone-vs-progestin/
http://www.oasisserene.com/learning/progesterone-progestin/

[musette_sf]

39. thanks for posting the links

and thank G-ddess that my personal physician got the message about bio-identical HRT in time.

when i began my menopause last year, all she would prescribe was PremPro, which i refused because i had read up on it. i asked her about bio-identicals, but at the time she told me to go see an endocrinologist because she had no expertise in that area. i struggled along for awhile with OTC stuff, but never really got much relief.

at my annual checkup this year, evidently many of her patients had started asking about bio-identical HRT after it was featured on Oprah. she prescribed estradiol and Prometrium (bio-identical progesterone). the difference i feel is amazing. the OTC stuff was like taking aspirin for a migraine.

Dr. Hotze i think can be a bit old-fashioned sexist in his attitude, but the fact is that he dedicates his practice to helping women make the most out of their later years.

[Locrian]

51. THANKS devinkay

I was just about to post similar. More FUD from the drug companies trying to use studies that found fault with SYNTHETIC formulas that they created, then using it to broad brush the competition (ie Bio-Identicals).

It is INTENTIONAL and they will try to push these types of scare tactics and even legislation for their own greed.

Anything the cannot patent and turn a profit on is target for these types of tactics. Witness the new Thyroid campaign as another example.

[Better Today]

40. Hysterectomy at 31, two weeks of HRT made me sluggish and bitchy, so

I quit taking them. The hot flashes were and still are an issue, nearly 20 years later, but a change of attitude regarding them has made them more than tolerable. I found that at first the biggest issue regarding them was the fact that they so annoyed me that even when they subsided, I'd be focused on the inconvenience.

Now I just keep extra attire handy for when I truly get soaked during the day, the nights are a bit troublesome but for the most part I can deal with it, they are somewhat cyclical so I can plan to have extra layer of sheets to throw off in the middle of the night during those times. Bahama Mama! Taking a tropical vacation! Tee heee. Actually during the winter months, I kind of like 'em warming me up.

I watched too many women get really chubby or truly fat after starting HRT and they usually had a return of really bad acne as well. Two things I didn't want. Most of them claimed to be in a better mood, but for me it wasn't so, and now I am the healthiest I've ever been.

I think many of us who had really bad PMS or periods forget what a hassle and how troublesome those were. For my part, I'd be down and in bed or a hot bath moaning and crying for three days with sever back and abdominal cramps. With that in mind, the inconveniences of no plumbing and no HRT is mild and tolerable.

[shanti]

43. hmmm

good thing i've never wanted to touch the stuff. mom's a RN and suggested i not take any, so i haven't.

[mainer]

54. If you've never smoked, this shouldn't be as much a concern

As the article pointed out, HRT doesn't cause lung cancer. But if you do get lung cancer, it worsens your chances of surviving it.

[WriteDown]

57. This really sucks if you have Cushing's or Addison's....

:)