Menopause news

Decline in breast cancer is not just because of hormone therapy

16 December 2009

Earlier this month (7 December, 2009), the American Association for Cancer Research issued a press statement entitled ‘Decline in breast cancer: not just because of hormone therapy’. This statement was reporting the work of Dr Brian Sprague, of the University of Wisconsin.

Since publication of results of the Women's Health Initiative trial in 2002, which suggested significant risks from the use of Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT), many women stopped taking HRT and less women started taking HRT for the first time. Overall, it is estimated that the number of women who now take HRT is less than half what it was prior to 2002. Over the last year, several publications have recorded a decline in the numbers of women reported to have developed breast cancer, this decline being thought to be directly due to the fall in HRT use, further supporting the association between use of HRT and breast cancer. However, this recent report suggests that less than half the decline in breast cancer cases is associated with HRT use and other factors appear to be involved which are yet to be identified.
Regarding use of HRT and breast cancer, it seems that HRT does not cause breast tissue to become cancerous but that in some women, if used long enough, it may stimulate the growth of already established cancer cells. This decline in diagnosis of breast cancer following cessation of HRT may simply reflect this lack of growth promotion but further information is needed to know what other factors are participating.

The full press release can be found at:

http://www.aacr.org/home/public--media/aacr-press-releases.aspx?d=1682

The International Menopause Society is issuing the following statement:

Dr David Sturdee, President of the International Menopause Society, said:

“Dr Sprague's finding that factors other than the decline in hormone replacement therapy (HRT) use are the major contributors to the drop in breast cancer cases is an interesting result. It seems to support what we have been saying for some time – that the effects of HRT on breast cancer have been overstated. We will need to wait until we see the full paper from Dr Sprague before commenting further, but for now we welcome this report as a contribution to a more balanced debate on the issue of how best to treat women going through a difficult menopause.”

See the IMS website at http://www.imsociety.org

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