In the March 5, 2008, edition of the American Medical Association (AMA) Journal of Medicine, results from the follow up study to the hallmark research study of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in post-menopausal women were released. Reinforcing the findings of the hallmark study, the benefits of HRT are far outweighed by the long term risks.
Substantial findings from the hallmark study indicated that women faced a greater risk of heart problems shortly after the introduction of estrogen and progesterone post-menopause. 16,608 women participated in the six year hallmark study.
Before the cessation of the study, increased occurrences of breast cancer were reported in the participants receiving conjugated equine estrogens (CEE) and medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA), the primary active hormonal ingredients in HRT pills.
While women who received the HRT pills saw a reduction of hip fractures and colorectal cancer, the increase in heart attacks and breast cancer tumors were the primary cause for halting the government study.
15,730 women participated in the follow up study to determine the risks and benefits two to three years after the study. Women who took the HRT pills found nearly immediate reduction in the cardiovascular risks. Over time, the benefit of reduced instances of colorectal cancer and hip fracture declined to the normal risk in the population who had not taken HRT.
This study has shown unexplained results. Those who took HRT pills had a higher incident rate of lung cancer tumors and remained higher than normal in breast cancer tumors.
Although the American trend reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for breast cancer is a reduction of breast cancer incidents. This trend, in light of this study, is being credited to fewer women beginning HRT rather than any other contributing factor.
Despite the increase (3 more per 1000) in breast cancer tumors in post-menopausal women who had taken HRT, critics blame this evidence on the process of the study. Each participant was to report every six months to her physician to track her progress.
Further criticism of the study points to the fact that the average participant was in her 60s, where the majority of women who take HRT are in their 50s. This criticism comes primarily from the manufacturer of Prempro, the studied HRT pills, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
While doctors still recommend HRT pills to women whose menopause symptoms are severe, they admit that vigilance in breast cancer detection and cardiovascular monitoring is paramount.
The eleven year study confirmed that HRT pills proposed risk (breast cancer, lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, heart attack) that significantly outweighed benefits.
Ann Marie Dwyer is an internationally-published, award-winning citizen journalist with bylines on Helium, One World Net, Yahoo! News and Global Exchange. Her articles appear in corporate newsletters, archive history web sites and in news print.
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