Hormones and Cancer

By Chris Schutz, Staff Writer

Published: April 28, 2008

When a woman is battling ovarian or uterine cancer and perhaps has gone through a hysterectomy, the question may arise: should she take hormone replacements to make up for loss of hormones usually supplied by the ovaries?

There is little reason to order hormone replacement therapy for patients being treated for ovarian or uterine cancer, a gynecologic oncologist with OU Physicians said.

There would be a “very limited” group of such patients that would benefit from taking progesterone, estrogen or a combination of those, said Dr. Kathleen Moore.

With these patients, “there really is not an indication for hormone replacement therapy currently.”

However, with patients who are “incredibly symptomatic,” with bothersome menopause-type problems like hot flashes, low doses of hormones may be prescribed, Moore said.

“We are not going to deny them hormone replacement therapy for their menopausal symptoms,” she said.

With some patients, such as those with cervical cancer, nonhormonal treatments would be tried first to alleviate menopausal symptoms, she said.

Estrogen would “never” be used for patients with advanced endometrial cancer, because it has the potential of making tumors grow faster, she said.

Fortunately, endometrial, or uterine, cancer tends to be caught early because of noticeable symptoms such as bleeding, she said.

Physicians continue to hope for a screening method for earlier detection of ovarian cancer, Moore said. Women with ovarian cancer may experience only subtle symptoms, and by the time they go to a doctor the disease has reached an advanced stage.

Moore said studies earlier this decade have shown the only benefits of hormone replacement therapy among the general population have been an apparent improvement in bone health and some reduction in risk of colorectal cancer.

Recent studies have not found any benefits relating to enhanced cardiovascular health or prevention of dementia, she said.

She notes that there seems to be an increased risk of breast cancer with the pill that combines both hormones.

“In general, there really isn’t an indication that hormone replacement therapy is a health benefit for anyone,” she said.

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