Do the risks apply to other forms of hormone therapy, such as the skin patch?
The women in the hormone therapy arm of the WHI study used a combination form of HT containing .625 milligrams of conjugated equine estrogens and 2.5 milligrams of medroxyprogesterone acetate (brand name Prempro®) in the form of a daily pill. For now, experts advise doctors and patients to assume that all formulations carry the same risks as those reported in the WHI. But in fact, until more research is conducted, it’s impossible to say whether other formulations or types of hormones will carry the same risks. Some of that research is already under way. In August 2003, for instance, the Million Women Study, a large observational survey investigating the link between hormone use and breast cancer, confirmed the results of the WHI but also looked at which kinds of HT are associated with the greatest risk. In that study, women taking combinations of estrogen and progestin had four times as many breast cancers as those using estrogen alone. The study found that for every 10,000 women takin
The women in the hormone therapy arm of the WHI study used a combination form of HT containing .625 milligrams of conjugated equine estrogens and 2.5 milligrams of medroxyprogesterone acetate (brand name Prempro) in the form of a daily pill. For now, experts advise doctors and patients to assume that all formulations carry the same risks as those reported in the WHI. But in fact, until more research is conducted, it’s impossible to say whether other formulations or types of hormones will carry the same risks. Some of that research is already under way. In August 2003, for instance, the Million Women Study, a large observational survey investigating the link between hormone use and breast cancer, confirmed the results of the WHI but also looked at which kinds of HT are associated with the greatest risk. In that study, women taking combinations of estrogen and progestin had four times as many breast cancers as those using estrogen alone. The study found that for every 10,000 women taking
